Moldova - Leadership

The massive outpouring of support for the Communist Party in 2001 surprised even the party officials. After the election Voronin was quoted as saying that he expected to win a majority, but more in the neighborhood of 55 seats rather than the 71 the party won. Much of the party's support was in reaction to the inability of the politically independent former president, Petru Lucinschi, to get along with the Communist-dominated Parliament. Lucinschi managed to pass some modest reforms concerning land ownership, but accomplished little else. The Communists also ran on a platform of increased relations with Moscow, the possibility of joining the on-again-off-again alliance of Russia and Belarus, and the introduction of Russian as a second official language. While much of the country's young oppose such eastward leanings, older Moldovans, particularly pensioners and the sizable Russian population, saw in these promises the possibility of a return to the stability of the old Soviet days. Turnout in the election was high among this group, accounting, many observers noted, for the lopsided Communist victory.