We assisted to the closing of the lists of candidates formally registered as previous speakers for the Presidential electoral campaign from the Republic of Moldova, on September 9th. More than that, the submission of the signed lists and documents has started. Also started the scandals and agitation of different candidates, an agitation of better positioning themselves.

To start with, a first conclusion is that too many people announced that they want to be President. These plenitude reminds me of the 1990th Elections in Romania, first free elections, when a lot of people submitted their candidacy, more and more unserious. Because this plenitude of candidates without any chances, with no Party and without any kind of support and their nomination is only for future visit cards on which it will written with golden letters: Candidate to Presidency of Republic of Moldova,  is a prove of an incipient political culture, is an useless waste of money.

In fact, the unserious candidates do not only create a crowding on the ballot paper – admitting that, at least partially, some of these nominees will submit the necessary documents to get on those ballot papers – but is crowding the public space with third – parties. Some might say that, although they intend, nevertheless, in some proportion to vote, it will be for the independent nominees. Nevertheless, the reality shows us that if there is no any political structure behind him and a representation at national level in the voting stations, only candidates that are truly sustained by big parties – in the impairment of their own nominees – could aim to a chance to obtain a reasonable percent at the polls.  

There is the practice of false voters, of clones, of the companions and of the “greyhounds” that crowds the track only to impede the detachment of the platoon, in all the electoral races. May be. However, this tactics work, at polls in immature democratic countries. In USA, we have only 4 candidates, from which two of them are in the campaign only for pure reasons of decor and for encouragement of some ideas in the public space – the liberalism and the environmentalism. The big parties are still making the game. In Great Britain, UKIP vanished immediately after Brexit validation, not even assuming the governing of the United Kingdom after exiting EU, as requested, on the contrary, Nigel Farange left home. In Spain, Ciudadamos extended the Governmental crises for the second time after the repeated elections, because he does not want to associate with classical parties, proving it is an anti-system and unreasonable Party, which does not take responsibility of governing. At Bucharest, the Save Bucharest Union took the local votes from the PNL dowry, with anarchism from the left wing with votes from the right wing, but did not took responsibility for city’s administration.

In Moldova the situation seems to be as well confusing, from many candidates of different colors, but the voter does not seem to be attracted by this race. Moreover, this context raises issues for those with reduced notoriety and debatable visibility. This could be a reason for the multitude of candidates; transparency of anybody is not relevant in Moldova until today. Maybe that is the reason of running after identity and agitation of some competitors.

The biggest mistake of a candidate at a poll is to challenge the poll itself. The lists of voters, organization, registration. Any beginner political consultant, any second year student at political sciences and any student at the political communication, even a freshman, knows it. You cannot claim winning a race that you enrolled in, if you start by motivating the subsequent loss at the voting through contesting the rules of the game.

Do not understand me incorrectly: technical issues are very important and can present the difference between victory and defeat. However, you do not identify publicly like this as a candidate and do not become credible as a winner, do not attract votes, whether it is the public approach of the campaign.

The accusation of theft at the urns belongs to the helpless ones, but even those are playing it at the end of the campaign. The President of the Romania Mare Party and eternal nominee, Corneliu Vladimir Tudor, had the habit to claim even after the end of elections that the surveys were wrong, the results should make him a winner, but the win was stolen from him. However, he also was marking the game of the winner, he appeared everywhere as the one who dominated the race and surely would win, nor as a looser, but the theft references were at the final, eventually after the results of voting.

The campaign started here as well with a same scandal. Andrei Nastase, the DA Party nominee, started by contesting the rules of the game and registration of Marian Lupu on a Saturday, first on the list, so first on the ballot paper. Besides, of the vagueness regarding the rules of drawing lots of the place on the ballot paper, after the final registration of all candidates, starting the campaign with such accusations is not the way of a winner, but a qualified looser. A winner does not care about the place on the ballot paper; his supporters will find his name. On the contrary, the scandal for minor technical affairs shows lack of preoccupation for serious matters in the campaign and for its own posture at the elections.    

We may consider that the attack was just a positioning as an opponent of Marian Lupu, PDM candidate, and as a player in the image plane by agitation, noise, increased visibility from the first moment. If this was the strategy, the theme was missed, as the chosen opponent. I do not think Marian Lupu has a chance to qualify to the second round if the right pro-European opposition will go on with a single candidate and if all spokespersons, including Nastase and PDA support him consistently. Therefore, the chosen opponent does not help, on the contrary. Moreover, in the second round, a candidate that cannot bring the votes of his pro-European supporters cannot win the nominee from the left wing, admitting that he will accede in the second round. That is why I say that Andrei Nastase manifests himself as a short-tempered and agitated ordinary outsider, announcing anticipated, at subliminal level, his loss to all his supporters. Let us hope that at second thought he will support the better-placed candidate of the right wing, according to the agreement.