Home > 3.2 Proportional systems > MOLDOVA- Joint Opinion on the Draft Law Amending the Electoral Legislation
 
 
 
Download file    
 
 
Paragraph 23
 

C. On the proposed mixed electoral system


According to the Election Code currently in force in Moldova, the 101 seats of the unicameral assembly are elected in one nationwide constituency through a proportional representation system from closed party-lists. MPs serve four-year terms. The minimum representation thresholds for parties to enter parliament are as follows: 6% for a political party; 9% for an electoral block of two political parties and/or socio-political organizations; 11% for an electoral block of 3 or more political parties and/or socio-political organizations; 2% for an independent candidate.Concerning the formula for mandate allocation, a reform in the Election Code of 2010 replaced the D’Hondt formula with a new method which allocates “remainder seats” on an equal basis to all parties that pass the threshold to enter parliament rather than on a proportional basis, resulting in a possible distribution of a greater number of seats to small parties.[1]


[1]According to Article 87 of the Election Code, mandates are first allocated to successful independent candidates. The votes cast in favour of these candidates are subtracted from the total number of valid votes. The remaining number of valid votes is then divided by the number of mandates remaining to obtain the electoral quotient. The number of votes cast for each party passing the threshold is then divided by the electoral quotient to obtain the number of mandates allocated to that party. If the resulting fraction is greater than 0.5, the party receives an additional mandate. Any remaining mandates are then allocated to the parties that crossed the threshold, starting with the party that received the largest number of mandates after the first distribution. One additional seat is given to each party until all mandates have been allocated. The timing and lack of public consultation on the amendment were criticised in the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission Final Report, early parliamentary elections, 28 November 2010, Moldova, pp. 5 and 6. It was also criticised in the PACE Election observation report, early parliamentary elections, 28 November 2010, Moldova, paras. 17-19.