Government

conventional long form: Republic of Moldova

conventional short form: Moldova

local long form: Republica Moldova

local short form: Moldova

former: Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic

etymology: named for the Moldova River in neighboring eastern Romania Government type

parliamentary republic Capital

name: Chisinau in Moldovan (Kishinev in Russian)

geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 28 51 E

time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology: origin unclear but may derive from the archaic Romanian word chisla ("spring" or "water source") and noua("new") because the original settlement was built at the site of a small spring

note: pronounced KEE-shee-now (KIH-shi-nyov) Administrative divisions 32 raions (raioane, singular - raion), 3 municipalities (municipii, singular - municipiul), 1 autonomous territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala autonoma), and 1 territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala)

raions: Anenii Noi, Basarabeasca, Briceni, Cahul, Cantemir, Calarasi, Causeni, Cimislia, Criuleni, Donduseni, Drochia, Dubasari, Edinet, Falesti, Floresti, Glodeni, Hincesti, Ialoveni, Leova, Nisporeni, Ocnita, Orhei, Rezina, Riscani, Singerei, Soldanesti, Soroca, Stefan Voda, Straseni, Taraclia, Telenesti, Ungheni

municipalities: Balti, Bender, Chisinau

autonomous territorial unit: Gagauzia

territorial unit: Stinga Nistrului (Transnistria) Independence

27 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union) National holiday

Independence Day, 27 August (1991) Constitution

history: previous 1978; latest adopted 29 July 1994, effective 27 August 1994

amendments: proposed by voter petition (at least 200,000 eligible voters), by at least one third of Parliament members, or by the government; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Parliament within one year of initial proposal; revisions to constitutional articles on sovereignty, independence, and neutrality require majority vote by referendum; articles on fundamental rights and freedoms cannot be amended; amended many times, last in 2018 Legal system

civil law system with Germanic law influences; Constitutional Court review of legislative acts International law organization participation

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction Citizenship

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Moldova

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years Suffrage

18 years of age; universal Executive branch

chief of state: President Maia SANDU (since 24 December 2020)

head of government: Prime Minister Natalia GAVRILITA (since 6 August 2021)

cabinet: Cabinet proposed by the prime minister-designate, nominated by the president, approved through a vote of confidence in Parliament

elections/appointments: president directly elected for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 15 November 2020 (next to be held in fall 2024); prime minister designated by the president upon consultation with Parliament; within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence for his/her proposed work program from the Parliament

election results: 2020: Maia SANDU elected president; percent of vote (second round results) - Maia SANDU (PAS) 57.7%, Igor DODON (PSRM) 42.3%

2016: Igor DODON elected president; percent of vote 52.1%, and Maia SANDU 47.9% Legislative branch

description: unicameral Parliament (101 seats; 51 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 50 members directly elected in a single, nationwide constituency by closed party-list proportional representation vote; all members serve 4-year terms

elections:

last held on 11 July 2021 (next scheduled in July 2025) election results: percent of vote by party - PAS 52.8%, BECS (PSRM+PCRM) 27.1%, SHOR 5.7%; seats by party - PAS 63, BECS 32, SHOR 6; composition as of July 2022 - men 60, women 41, percent of women 40.6% Judicial branch

highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice (consists of the chief judge, 3 deputy-chief judges, 45 judges, and 7 assistant judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the court president and 6 judges); note - the Constitutional Court is autonomous to the other branches of government; the Court interprets the Constitution and reviews the constitutionality of parliamentary laws and decisions, decrees of the president, and acts of the government

judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court of Justice judges appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistracy, an 11-member body of judicial officials; all judges serve 4-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges appointed 2 each by Parliament, the president, and the Higher Council of Magistracy for 6-year terms; court president elected by other court judges for a 3-year term

subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; Court of Business Audit; municipal courts Political parties and leaders Party of Action and Solidarity or PAS [Igor GROSU] Electoral Bloc of Communists and Socialists or BCS [Vlad BATRINCEA, PSRM and Vladimir VORONIN, PCRM] Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova or PCRM [Vladimir VORONIN] Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova or PSRM [Vlad BATRINCEA] SOR Party or PS [Ilan SHOR] (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle []).push({});