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Alexandr Stoianoglo

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Alexandr Stoianoglo
Aleksandr Stoyanoglu
Stoianoglo in 2019
Prosecutor General of Moldova
In office
29 November 2019 – 26 September 2023
Suspended since 5 October 2021
Preceded byEduard Harunjen
Succeeded byIon Munteanu
Member of the Moldovan Parliament
In office
14 August 2009 – 9 December 2014
Parliamentary groupDemocratic Party
Vice President of the Moldovan Parliament
In office
25 September 2009 – 28 November 2010
Serving with
PresidentMihai Ghimpu (acting)
Prime MinisterVlad Filat
Preceded byMarcel Răducan
Succeeded byLiliana Palihovici
Personal details
Born (1967-06-03) 3 June 1967 (age 57)
Comrat, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union (now Moldova)
Citizenship Moldova
 Romania[1]
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations
PSRM (2024, affiliated)
PDM (2009–2014)
Alma materMoldova State University

Alexandr Stoianoglo (Gagauz: Aleksandr Stoyanoglu;[2] born 3 June 1967) is a Moldovan former prosecutor and politician.

Stoianoglo was a candidate in the 2024 Moldovan presidential election.[3] He came second in the first round of voting, eventually losing to incumbent president Maia Sandu in the runoff.[4]

Personal life

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Alexandr Stoianoglo is an ethnic Gagauz.[5] Apart from being a Moldovan citizen, he also has Romanian citizenship.[1] Stoianoglo speaks Romanian, Russian, Gagauz and Turkish. He has daughters, with his youngest employed at the European Central Bank in Germany.[6]

Career

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Stoianoglo graduated from law school in 1992 and worked as a prosecutor in Gagauzia. He was a member of the Parliament of Moldova from 2009–2014 and became Prosecutor General of Moldova in 2019.[6]

On 5 October 2021, Stoianoglo was arrested by security forces under allegations of corruption.[7] In total, five cases were filed against him by Lilian Carp MP, a Vice President of the governing Party of Action and Solidarity. He was suspended from office by Maia Sandu's government, who won the presidency in 2020 on an anti-corruption ticket, before being ultimately dismissed as Prosecutor General in September 2023.[7][8]

In 2023, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Stoianoglo's right to a fair trial had been violated and awarded him 3,600 Euros in damages.[9] In February 2024, a Chișinău court acquitted him in the case involving authorisation of payments to a subordinate prosecutor. During the trial, Stoianoglo accused the government of using the cases to prevent him from ridding the prosecutor's office of political influence.[8]

2024 presidential campaign

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Stoianoglo ran as a candidate with the support of the Party of Socialists in the 2024 Moldovan presidential election, where he gained enough votes to force a runoff despite placing second in the first round of voting on 20 October. He faced incumbent president Maia Sandu in the second round on 3 November.[10]

Stoianoglo expressed opposition to amending the Constitution of Moldova to enshrine its commitment to joining the European Union in the 2024 Moldovan European Union membership referendum held on the same day as the first round of the presidential election, although he says that he is a supporter of Moldova's "European aspirations".[10] He has also promised a "balanced" foreign policy with the EU, the United States, Russia, and China as part of his campaign pledge.[11] He also pledged to restore the supply of cheap Russian gas.[12] During a debate on 27 October, he pledged to continue support for Ukraine.[13] After it was noted that his youngest daughter was working in Germany, an EU member state, Stoianoglo said it was "the right of every young person in Moldova" to go where they wanted.[6]

Stoianoglo has been described by Western media as being backed by a "pro-Russian" campaign.[14][15][16] He lost in the runoff vote on 3 November to Sandu, winning 45.03% of the vote. He had a greater vote share in rural areas and a greater share of ballots cast within Moldova overall, whilst the winner Sandu claimed more votes amongst those living in cities, and from Moldovans in work or education overseas.[17]

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ a b Georgescu, Andrei (30 September 2024). "Situație jenantă pentru Igor Dodon. Candidatul partidului său la prezidențiale are cetățenia română". HotNews.ro (in Romanian).
  2. ^ "Prezident seçimnerinin II-ci turu ön sonucu: Maya SANDU 55,15%, Aleksandr STOYANOGLU 44,85%" (in Gagauz). Ana Sözü. 4 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Alexandr Stoianoglo voted for "peaceful, modern and prosperous Moldova"". www.moldpres.md. 20 October 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  4. ^ "Moldova EU vote too close to call with 98% counted". BBC. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
  5. ^ "Protest la Comrat în sprijinul procurorului general Alexandr Stoianoglo" (in Romanian). Radio Europa Liberă Moldova. 6 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "Moldova vote pits pro-EU president against ex-prosecutor". France 24. 3 November 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Moldova's top prosecutor suspended and detained in corruption case". Reuters. 6 October 2021.
  8. ^ a b Coptu, Nadejda (28 February 2024). "Alexandr Stoianoglo, achitat în dosarul indemnizației de concediere pentru Nicolae Chitoroagă". Radio Europa Liberă (in Romanian).
  9. ^ Coptu, Nadejda (24 October 2023). "Fostul procuror general câștigă la CEDO". Radio Europa Liberă (in Romanian).
  10. ^ a b "Moldova says 'Yes' to pro-EU constitutional changes by tiny margin". BBC. 21 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Moldova narrowly votes for EU membership amid fraud claims". Al Jazeera. 21 October 2024.
  12. ^ "Moldovans vote in tense presidential run-off amid Russian meddling claims". Al Jazeera. 2024-11-03. Retrieved 2024-11-03.
  13. ^ Fornusek, Martin (28 October 2024). "Sandu's rival claims support for Ukraine, Moldovan president calls him 'Moscow's man'". The Kyiv Independent. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  14. ^ Gavin, Gabriel (21 October 2024). "Moldova votes yes to joining EU by tiny margin". Politico. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
  15. ^ "Moldova referendum: Provisional results show thin margin for EU membership". BBC News. 2024-10-20. Retrieved 2024-10-21.
  16. ^ Sauer, Pjotr (2024-10-21). "Moldovans back joining the EU by razor-thin majority". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-21.
  17. ^ "Pro-EU leader claims Moldova victory despite alleged Russian meddling". BBC. 2024-11-04. Retrieved 2024-11-04.
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