The results of the new mayoral elections that will take place in Chisinau on May 20 depend on the voter turnout. The turnout in Chisinau will be of 73%. These persons will definitely or probably take part in elections, shows the Public Opinion Barometer (POB) that was presented by the Institute for Public Policy on May 14, IPN reports.
Asked who they will vote for on May 20, 30% of those polled said they will vote for Ion Ceban (PSRM), 23% for Silvia Radu (independent), 15% for Andrei Nastase (PPPDA), 5% for Valeriu Munteanu, 3% for Constantin Codreanu (PUN) and 3% for Reghina Apostolova (candidate of Shor Party who was excluded from the race based on the first court’s decision). The other candidates would gain less than 3% of the vote. 19% of those surveyed don’t know how they would vote.
Institute for Public Policy executive director Arcadie Barbarosie said it’s clear that runoffs will be held in Chisinau as it is highly improbable that one of the candidates will win 51% of the poll. If Silvia Radu and Ion Ceban reach the runoffs, 32% of those questioned would vote for Radu while 31% for Ceban. 37% of the respondents said they don’t know who they would vote for.
If Silvia Radu and Andrei Nastase compete in the runoffs, the independent candidate will get 33% of the ballot, while the PPPDA candidate – 21%. If the runoffs involve Ion Ceban and Andrei Nastase, 33% would vote for the first and 27% for the second.
Arcadie Barbarosie noted that Ion Ceban does not enjoy full support, but will have bigger chances of winning the elections if the voter turnout is low. Silvia Radu will have to convince the people to vote in the turnoffs if she reaches them. Andrei Nastase will also have to persuade his supporters to vote again if he competes in the runoffs.
The POB results for the mayoral elections in the municipality of Balti are as follows: 28% of the residents of Balti would vote for Nicolae Grigorishin (“Our Party”), 26% for Alexandru Usatyi (PSRM), 8% for Arina Spataru (PPPDA), 7% for Elena Gritsko (independent), while 4% for Sergiu Burlacu (PUN). 3% of those polled mentioned another person, while 24% said they don’t know.
The poll was conducted during April 19 – May 9 and covered a sample of 1,115 people. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3%. Additionally, 409 persons were interviewed for the Chisinau elections and the margin of error is +/- 4%, while over 200 persons were questioned for the Balti elections and the margin of error is +/- 6%.
