Moldova's pro-West president wins 2nd term

What happened

Moldova's president, Maia Sandu, won a second term Sunday. Sandu, a 52-year-old former World Bank adviser who is pushing her ex-Soviet satellite country to join the European Union, beat former prosecutor Alexandr Stoianoglo 55% to 45% in a second round of voting.

Who said what

"Moldova, you are victorious!" Sandu said early Monday. "Today, dear Moldovans, you have given a lesson in democracy, worthy of being written in history books. Today, you have saved Moldova!" As with the first round, she said Russia had aggressively meddled during the campaign to swing power to Stoianoglo, who heads a traditionally pro-Moscow party. Russia denied interfering. Georgia, another ex-Soviet country seeking EU membership, reelected a Russia-friendly prime minister last week, in an election its president called a "Russian special operation."

"It takes a rare kind of strength to overcome the challenges you've faced in this election," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told Sandu on X. "I'm glad to continue working with you towards a European future for Moldova and its people." Moldova, "sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania," has "seesawed between East and West since it gained independence in 1991," The New York Times said.

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What next?

Sandu's victory "delivered a major lift to the West's hopes of loosening Moscow's grip on former Soviet territories," the Times said. But Stoianoglo's "dominance across swathes of the country," Reuters said, suggested Sandu's party "faces a stiff challenge at key parliamentary elections next summer."