The 2020 presidential elections become an opportunity to launch a Unionist candidate (Octavian Țîcu), who has less public support than the popularity of Igor Dodon or Maia Sandu, writes political scientist Dionis Cenuşa in a new analytical article for the IPN News Agency.

The slim chances of creating political competition do not discourage unionists. They tend to become more visible and mix with the voter pool of Maia Sandu, where the attitude towards unionist rhetoric is pragmatic and inhibited, argues the political scientist.

He recalls that the parties that support the unionism are testing voters' trust by launching a common platform - the "Unirea" Movement, but which only brings together five parties.

Mutual distrust and fierce competition for political resources impede the establishment of a single centre of Unionist forces. This is why the public perception regarding the re-unification with Romania is missing from the decision-making processes, explains Dionis Cenușa.

Voters could contribute to ensuring a sufficient representation of unionism in parliament, if they came across a unique political identity, instead of two or more, the political scientist says.

He considers it risky to operationalize unionism as long as voters see it neither as a feasible political project nor as an existential alternative for Moldova. Therefore, Dionis Cenușa believes that the merging of the Unionist forces would be the first precondition for promoting unionism as a credible national idea.

If good governance becomes a reality in Romania and the EU enlargement to the east is frozen, then the population can think of a unionist alternative. The worsening of the performance of the Moldovan governments or the geopolitical proximity to Russia can also accelerate the unionist thinking, the political scientist concludes.