Gagauzia bashkan election date remains unset
An extraordinary meeting of the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia, which was due to discuss the date of the Gagauzia bashkan election, failed to take place because there was no quorum.
Only 14 deputies attended the session. Chairman Valentin Gaidarzhi announced a break and tried to contact absent members, but his efforts failed to bring enough deputies to the chamber and the meeting was ultimately unable to proceed.
Alongside setting a date for the Gagauzia bashkan election, the agenda included a proposed appeal to the Venice Commission over amendments to the Electoral Code.
The revised legislation introduces new requirements for candidates seeking to become bashkan of the autonomy. Candidates will now be required to speak Romanian and to have lived permanently in Gagauzia for at least 10 years. Opposition representatives regard the new requirements as discriminatory and intend to challenge them.
Opposition contests new electoral rules
The opposition is also dissatisfied with changes to the way the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia will be elected. The elections due to take place this year will be the last held under the majoritarian system. Subsequent elections are expected to use a proportional representation system instead.
The failure of the extraordinary session means that the date of the Gagauzia bashkan election remains unresolved, while disputes over the new eligibility requirements and changes to the autonomy’s electoral system continue.
