The electoral period, according to the Electoral Code, is the period between the day the election day is made known and the day the election results are confirmed by the responsible bodies, but is not longer than 90 days. The election campaign is the period during which activities are performed to persuade the voters to vote for a particular election runner. This starts, for each electoral contender, when this is registered by the Central Election Commission (CEC) or the district electoral council and ends on the day the contender is removed from the race or on the election day.
Contacted by IPN for details, CEC vice president Vladimir Șarban said the electoral period starts when the document by which the election day is set is made public or takes effect. This can be the presidential decree, as in the case of the snap parliamentary elections that are to take place, or the Parliament decision on the general elections. The period ends when the election results are totaled and confirmed.
The electoral period lasts differently, but for at most 90 days. “Evidently, it can last less. In the current situation, the decree was issued on April 28. Sixty days are needed for organizing the elections and there will be 10-15 days more during which the Constitutional Court will pronounce,” stated Vladimir Șarban.
According to him, the election campaign for the election runners – political parties, independent candidates, electoral blocs – starts when they are registered by the electoral body.
In the case of general, parliamentary and presidential elections, the candidates are registered by the CEC. In the case of local elections, this is the duty of the inferior electoral bodies. This period, since their registration until the election, is needed for persuading the electors to vote for a particular runner. The candidates are fielded or put themselves forward within a period that ends 30 days before the election day. If a candidate presents the documents for registration 30 days before the election day, at least seven days are needed to register this and the election campaign for the candidate starts from that moment.
In the election campaign, the contenders can campaign and can present their electoral programs and list of candidates to the public. They have the right to airtime or to have meetings with voters for electoral purposes. Before the political parties, independent candidates, electoral blocs are registered, these cannot campaign and stage propaganda events.
