New local elections: four mayors elected in the first round, Novosiolovca falls short of turnout threshold, while Delacău votes “YES” in referendum

The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) published preliminary results on 1 November 2026, after polling stations closed, for new local elections in six localities and the local referendum in the village of Delacău. In four localities, a candidate for mayor received more than half of the valid votes cast, the legal threshold for election in the first round. In Novosiolovca, Taraclia district, the only candidate received all the votes, but turnout of 22.65% was below the validity threshold of one quarter of registered voters. The CEC notes that all figures are preliminary until it receives the original documents from the lower-level electoral bodies.

Turnout and the context of each election are described in our report from yesterday: New local elections in seven localities: final voter turnout and what happens next before results are confirmed.

Results by locality

The figures below reproduce the CEC announcements of 1 November 2026. The percentages are those published by the CEC, and the number of voters who participated is the figure reported by the CEC for each locality.

• Hăsnășenii Mari village, Drochia district (589 voters, 48.49%): Andrei Arhirii (“Party of Change”), 413 votes (70.12%); Angela Moroșan (“Democracy at Home”), 114 (19.35%); Vasile Russu (PSRM), 62 (10.53%).

• Cairaclia village, Taraclia district (557 voters, 38.23%): Marta Chemencedji (independent), 458 votes (82.23%); Petru Cocîrța (independent), 55 (9.87%); Svetlana Malai (PSRM), 30 (5.39%); Serghei Manolov (independent), 14 (2.51%).

• Costești town, Rîșcani district (1,127 voters, 37.67%): Elona Zuza (PSRM), 787 votes (69.83%); Ruslan Cecan (“Our Party”), 292 (25.91%); Vasili Rolinschi (“Democracy at Home”), 48 (4.26%).

• Chirsova village, ATU Gagauzia (2,288 voters, 40.27%): Serghei Sapunji (independent), 1,247 votes (54.50%); Tatiana Meșa (independent), 667 (29.15%); Dmitri Varban (independent), 198 (8.65%); Vasile Stoinov (independent), 176 (7.69%).

• Novosiolovca village, Taraclia district (236 voters, 22.65%): Vasili Sacalî (PSRM), the only candidate, 236 votes (100%).

Under the Electoral Code (Art. 173), a candidate for mayor is elected if they receive more than half of the valid votes cast. Based on the preliminary figures, no second round is needed in any of the four localities where the election is valid.

Tomai local council

A total of 1,152 voters (28.99%) took part in the election for the new village council in Tomai, ATU Gagauzia. The list of the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova received 621 votes (53.91%). Among the 14 independent candidates, Iuri Berber received the most votes, 77 (6.68%), followed by Igor Topciu, 76 (6.60%), and Ivan Nedov, 54 (4.69%). The other independent candidates received between 11 and 50 votes each. The council has 13 seats. As of the publication of this report, the CEC had not published the allocation of seats, which is determined on the basis of the minutes of the district electoral council.

Novosiolovca: one candidate, turnout below threshold

In Novosiolovca, 236 voters went to the polls, or 22.65% of those on the electoral lists, and all voted for the only candidate, Vasili Sacalî. Under the Electoral Code (Art. 175), an election in which fewer than one quarter of registered voters participate is considered invalid. As of 9:15 a.m. on 2 November (Chisinau time), the CEC had not issued a decision on the validity of the election in Novosiolovca. If the election is declared invalid, the law provides for a repeat vote within two weeks, using the same lists and candidates; it is valid regardless of the number of participants (Art. 177).

The referendum in Delacău

In the local referendum in Delacău village, Anenii Noi district, voters were asked whether they supported banning changes to the designated use of land in Delacău village for the extraction of mineral resources less than 1 km from the boundary of the built-up area. According to the CEC, 568 voters voted “YES” (96.11%), while 23 voted “NO” (3.89%). Turnout was 35.21%, above the one-quarter threshold. Under the law, a decision in a local referendum is considered adopted if a majority of those who took part in the vote support it.

What happens next

• Requests for a recount may be submitted within three days of the announcement of the preliminary results (Art. 95(10) of the Electoral Code). On 31 October, the CEC announced the temporary suspension of the “Online Appeals” module; during this period, appeals may be submitted to info@cec.md or at the CEC headquarters.

• District electoral councils confirm the legality of elections and validate mandates within no more than 10 days of receiving the documents, after appeals have been resolved (Art. 174).

• The CEC is expected to rule on the election in Novosiolovca and, if it declares it invalid, to set a date for the repeat vote.

• For the referendum in Delacău, the CEC confirms or rejects the results within 10 days of receiving the electoral council’s report (Art. 238).

Sources

• Central Electoral Commission, CEC presents the first preliminary results of the new local elections (1.11.2026)

• Central Electoral Commission, CEC presents preliminary results of the new local elections in two more localities (1.11.2026)

• Central Electoral Commission, CEC presents preliminary results of the new local elections for the local council of Tomai village, ATU Gagauzia (1.11.2026)

• Central Electoral Commission, CEC presents preliminary results of the local referendum in Delacău village, Anenii Noi district (1.11.2026)

• Central Electoral Commission, CEC announces temporary suspension of the “Online Appeals” module (31.10.2026)

• Central Electoral Commission, Voting has ended in the seven localities where new local elections and a local referendum were held today (1.11.2026)

• e-lex.md, Electoral Code No. 325/2022 (Arts. 95, 173–177, 238–239)