Gagauzia to Consider Declaring Bashkan’s Office Vacant and Calling New Elections

At its July 31 session, the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia will consider declaring the office of the Bashkan vacant and setting a date for the election of a new head of the autonomous region. Both items are included in the published agenda of the Assembly’s meeting. The draft resolution states that the ruling of the Centru Court of Appeal is final, and lawmakers are therefore asked to formally declare the office of the Bashkan vacant, ipn.md reports. A separate agenda item concerns setting the date for the election of the Head of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia. Under Gagauzia’s Law on the Election of the Bashkan, if the office becomes vacant, new elections must be held within three months from the date the vacancy arises. The election date is to be set by a resolution of the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia. Evghenia Gutul was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment in a semi-closed correctional facility in a case involving the illegal financing of the Sor Party. According to prosecutors, between 2019 and 2022, while working for the Sor Party, Gutul participated in bringing large sums of money into Moldova and distributing the funds. One of the charges relates to the financing of protests in Chisinau. Gutul and her lawyers deny all accusations, describing the criminal case as politically motivated. Earlier, officials in Gagauzia discussed the possibility of holding the Bashkan election simultaneously with elections to the People’s Assembly. Elections for the People’s Assembly are scheduled for November 15.