Chisinau, Moldova – A new poll in Moldova by the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in Survey Research (CISR) shows strong support for European Union (EU) membership, optimism in the country’s direction, and rising approval ratings for President Maia Sandu.

Our polling continues to demonstrate that Moldovans want to further associate with the West,

Stephen Nix, Senior Director for Eurasia at IRI

The poll found that Moldovan support for joining the EU remains at 63%. This is unchanged from a previous IRI poll conducted in November 2022.  

“Our polling continues to demonstrate that Moldovans want to further associate with the West,” said Stephen Nix, Senior Director for Eurasia at IRI. “Membership in the EU will undoubtedly help bring peace and prosperity to Moldova.” 

The survey found that 42% of adults believe Moldova is moving in the right direction. This represents a 14-point increase from IRI’s previous poll and the highest it has been in nearly a decade.

President Sandu’s approval rating is also on the rise, increasing by 6 percentage points in the last poll to 46% today.  

“Citizens in Moldova, including the youth, are growing increasingly confident in the Sandu government’s ability to manage the economic, military, and energy issues that have arisen in recent years,” said Nix.

Methodology    

The survey was coordinated by Dr. Rasa Alisauskiene from Baltic Surveys/The Gallup Organization on behalf of the Center for Insights in Survey Research. The fieldwork was carried out by Magenta Consulting. Data was collected throughout Moldova (with the exception of Transnistria) between July 11 and August 1, 2023, through face-to-face interviews in respondent’s homes.  The main sample consisted of 1,199 permanent residents of Moldova aged 18 and older and eligible to vote and is representative of the general population by gender, region, and settlement size (urban/rural), according to the Moldova Statistical Databank from 2019.​   

The sample of residents of Chisinau Municipality consists of 695 permanent residents of Chisinau Municipality aged 18 and older. It is representative of the Chisinau Municipality population by gender and settlement size (urban/rural), according to the Moldova Statistical Databank from 2019. It is made up of 293 interviews from the main sample and 402 oversample interviews. ​  

The main sample was weighted for gender, region, and urbanicity and the Chisinau sample was weighted for gender and urbanicity according to the Moldova Statistical Databank from 2019. ​The margin of error of the main sample does not exceed plus or minus 2.8 percentage points. The response rate in the main sample was 54 percent.​ 

​The survey was funded by the United States Agency for International Development.​  

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