Overview

• President Maia Sandu warned of an "enormous" push from Moscow to sway the parliamentary election, accusing Russia of spending hundreds of millions of euros on party financing, vote-buying and training for destabilising actions.
• Police said they recently detained 74 suspects accused of planning unrest on Moscow’s behalf, as authorities step up security measures before polls open on Sunday.
• The electoral commission removed a pro‑Russian party from the ballot shortly before the vote over suspected illegal financing, with officials also citing bribery and money‑laundering allegations in related rulings.
• Investigators reported large cash transfers from Russia to voters in the run‑up to the election, including payments to more than 130,000 people last month.
• Pre‑election surveys indicate a neck‑and‑neck race between Sandu’s pro‑EU PAS and the Russia‑oriented Patriotic Block, with the outcome seen as decisive for Moldova’s EU trajectory and regional security posture.