Global Elections Updates: Moldova, Czech Republic, & Bolivia

Moldova

Overview

Parliamentary elections were held in Moldova on September 28^th to elect all 101 seats in its unicameral legislature. Moldovan parliamentarians are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms. Maia Sandu, Moldova’s pro-EU president, and her party, the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) won 50.2% of the vote, winning 55 seats, while the Patriotic Electoral Bloc (BEP), Moldova’s pro-Russian opposition, led by former President Igor Dodon, secured 26 seats.

Despite retaining the requisite 51-seat majority, PAS lost eight seats, while BEP lost six seats. PAS and BEP’s losses were offset by significant gains from the smaller pro-Russian parties including “Our Party” (PN), Democracy at Home Party (PPDA), and the newly established political alliance, “Alternativa.”

Outlook 

European leaders hailed PAS’s victory as a victory for Moldova’s pro-European future, and on October 16^, Moldova’s Constitutional Court validated the election results. In the run-up to elections, Moldovan authorities accused Russia of election interference, and election officials banned two pro-Russian parties over suspected illegal financing. Under the leadership of Sandu and PAS, Moldova’s EU membership bid has made significant progress, with candidate status being granted by the EU in 2022. Accession negotiations are expected to begin by the end of 2025, and the government has identified 2030 as a target date for Moldova to join the EU. PAS will need to form a new government, including identifying a replacement for the outgoing Prime Minister, Dorin Recean, who is stepping down from Parliament.

With elections not scheduled for the next three years, PAS must focus on the issues at hand, which include advancing Moldova’s EU accession and addressing the country’s slowing economic growth, while also contending with the impacts of Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Czech Republic

Overview

Over October 3^rd and 4^th, the Czech Republic held parliamentary elections to fill all 200 seats of the Chamber of Deputies, the lower chamber of the nation’s bicameral legislature. The nationalist right-wing party ANO, led by former Prime Minister and billionaire Andrej Babiš declared victory with 34% of the vote, defeating incumbent Prime Minister Petr Fiala from the Spolu (Together) coalition, which obtained 23% of the vote.

With 80 seats in Parliament, ANO party failed to secure the required 101 seats to form a majority and will need to form a coalition government. Babiš is leading negotiations to form a government coalition with other right-wing, Euro-skeptic parties including Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and the Motorists for Themselves (AUTO). Babiš has pledged to continue the country’s pro-NATO and pro-European stance, although he stands against key EU decisions, including providing support to Ukraine and imposing oil sanctions on Russia.

Outlook

Andrej Babiš expects to form a governing coalition and allocate cabinet positions among its coalition members before the new Parliament convenes on November 3. However, under the Czech Constitution, the Prime Minister and his cabinet must be approved by President Petr Pavel, who has made clear that he will not endorse any candidates holding anti-European or anti-NATO views. President Pavel has also indicated that he is consulting his lawyers on the possibility of blocking Babiš’s appointment as Prime Minister, citing a potential conflict of interest involving his company, Agrofert. However, more recently, he said that Babiš could be confirmed as Prime Minister if he manages to form a government.

The ANO-led government has drawn criticism over the potential appointment of ministers with extremist views and the risk of significant policy shifts. Andrej Babiš still has a few days to reach an agreement and reconcile anti-NATO positions within the coalition to assume the office of Prime Minister officially. The next round of Senate elections, in which one-third of seats will be up for reelection, is due to be held by September 2026 while Presidential elections are slated to be held by January 2028.

Bolivia

Overview

On October 19, Bolivians held a runoff election to elect a new president and vice president for the 2025-2030 term. Rodrigo Paz Pereira of the Christian Democratic Party (PDC) declared victory with 54% of the vote, shifting the government from a left-leaning to a center-right stance for the first time in two decades. Paz Pereira’s choice of, Edmand Lara, a former police officer and popular anti-corruption activist, as a running mate played a key role in Paz Pereira’s victory. As vice president, Edmand Lara has pledged to ensure accountability and transparency in the new government. In second place, Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga, who served as president from 2001 to 2002, conceded defeat with 45% of the vote. He campaigned on the privatization of state-owned companies, spending cuts, and the elimination of fuel subsidies.

Outlook

President-elect Rodrigo Paz Pereira is scheduled to be sworn in on November 8. He is an economist, a former lawmaker, mayor, and senator, and the son of former president Jaime Paz (1989–1993). During the campaign, he pledged to address fuel shortages and economic stagnation through a liberalization strategy. He seeks to stabilize the Bolivian currency, increase access to credit, and lower trade tariffs.

Rodrigo Paz also plans to implement government transparency measures, reduce public spending, and decentralize the government to boost the economy. Paz will be aided in implementing his agenda by his party’s majority position in both chambers of Peru’s Congress of the Republic, the country’s bicameral legislature. In March 2026, Bolivians will return to the polls to elect governors and mayors, a vote that will once again test citizens’ party preferences at the local level.