Authors

Discussion

Moldova ended up at the centre of geopolitical competition, framed by the war in neighbouring Ukraine and the evolving Russia-Europe confrontation. The geopolitical clash intertwined with the local context and political divisions. Local political actors are often perceived as being defined by the geopolitical West-Russia (often combined with democracy/autocracy axis) divide which Moldovan politicians eagerly exploit in their internal political struggles.

The debates and discussions on the fate of Moldovan democracy intensified during the 2025 parliamentary elections. Basically all electoral forces - whether from the 'pro-European' or 'pro-Russian' camps - accused the opponents of undermining the Moldovan democracy, the use of lies, disinformation, and electoral tricks, incompatible with democratic ideals.

Saving Moldovan democracy became a leitmotif of the elections for almost all the contestants. Local media had also plunged into the political struggles, publishing stories on the participants' democratic credentials, truthfulness and falsehoods in their discourses, as well as the (un)democratic manifestations in the electoral process. At the heart of these discoursive clashes were competing interpretations and instrumentalisations of democratic discourses, and the complex relations between democracy, elections, truth, and lies. 

Based on a sample of materials from leading Moldovan (social) media, the paper will tackle these complex relationships in the discourses of Moldovan politicians and the media coverage of the electoral process.