Electoral Promises of Candidates in the Snap Parliamentary Elections: Abundant Populism and Lack of Feasibility

Only five of the 22 contestants presented detailed programmes, 12 offered brief ones of one to two pages, and five had none. Common promises include support for SMEs, lower social inequality, local authority autonomy and better infrastructure. Some proposals are largely unrealistic: price controls, nationalising importers of alcohol, oil products and tobacco, replacing about 150 taxes with a single tax, or using National Bank of Moldova reserves for public investment. The authors also criticised the Regions Party's plan to revise land distribution under the “Pământ” programme.

Parties compete on pensions: minimum pensions range from MDL 2,000 (PAS) to MDL 4,000 (PUN). PACE and the “Renato Usatîi” Bloc focus on law enforcement. The authors conclude that most promises lack financial coverage, as their cost over four years far exceeds budgetary capacity, and urge realistic, comprehensive visions.