‘Where Did Our Choices Go?’ Moldovans in the US Say Mailed Ballots Left off Opposition Parties

Moldovan voters living in the United States say they’ve received absentee ballots that leave out two parties legally cleared to run—touching off anger, confusion and fresh questions about the integrity of the vote abroad. Ballots delivered by mail did not list the Patriot Bloc (backed by Igor Dodon, Irina Vlah and Vasile Tarlev) or the National Alternative Movement led by Chișinău’s mayor, Ion Ceban. Both groups are in opposition to the ruling PAS and have been frequent targets of criticism from President Maia Sandu.

What’s stoking outrage isn’t just the omission, it’s the silence. Voters say there’s been no official explanation from the Central Election Commission—known locally as CEC/ZEC—which also oversees voting overseas. Without a clear reason, many in the diaspora see the missing names as a basic fairness problem, especially when those same parties are campaigning freely back home.

“I’ve followed the news; I knew this party was on the ballot. I opened the envelope and it wasn’t there,” a Moldovan living in Chicago said. “It feels like our rights are being clipped.”

The stakes are real. In recent elections, Moldova’s diaspora turnout has been large enough to sway results, which is why any hiccup in how overseas voting is organized draws instant scrutiny. This one, critics argue, looks less like a hiccup and more like a red flag: two recognized parties gone without notice on US-bound ballots.

Opposition figures and election-watch groups are demanding answers and a fix—fast. They want the commission to explain how the omissions happened, reissue correct ballots if needed, and show the paper trail that proves every party certified at home appears on every ballot abroad. Absent that, suspicions of political heavy-handedness will keep simmering.

Context matters here. The Patriot Bloc and the National Alternative Movement are prominent and visible inside Moldova, yet voters in the US say they couldn’t even find them on their ballot. That disconnect has fueled accusations that the authorities are squeezing the opposition, whether by design or by negligence.

For now, the commission hasn’t provided a public rationale, and the government hasn’t addressed the specifics. Until they do, diaspora voters are left with an uncomfortable question: if the choices change between Chișinău and Chicago, whose election is this, really?

Hot News 24 and Node of Time contributed to this report.