§ Electoral Code art. 90Peculiarities of the coverage of elections by media outlets

Peculiarities of the coverage of elections by media outlets
(1) During the electoral period, audiovisual electoral programmes and written material,
which in one way or another target initiative groups, electoral competitors (election candidates)
and referendum participants, are broadcast/published in compliance with the Rules on the
coverage of elections by media outlets, approved by the Central Electoral Commission.
(2) In audiovisual media services, initiative groups, electoral competitors (election
candidates), referendum participants, their representatives and trusted people may not
intervene directly or indirectly or be targeted by third parties in audiovisual programmes other
than those of an electoral nature, expressly set out in statements of editorial policies of media
service providers. Audiovisual electoral programmes shall be deemed to be the following:
a) news and current affairs programmes — information headings or groupings,
highlighted by unique acoustic and visual signals, where information about voting technique,
electoral system, other aspects of the electoral process, opinion polls and campaign activities
of initiative groups, electoral competitors and referendum participants can be disseminated;
b) Electoral information broadcasts — those where initiative groups, electoral
competitors (election candidates), referendum participants or their representatives can
present political programmes and discuss various issues of public interest organised at the
initiative of the media service provider;
c) Electoral promotion broadcasts — those during which airtime granted to initiative
groups, electoral competitors and referendum participants are disseminated in accordance
with the provisions of this Code;
d) Electoral debates — those in which initiative groups, electoral competitors (election
candidates), referendum participants or their representatives are asked to express their views
on the topics proposed for discussion by the media service provider.
e) Electoral advertising programmes — those intended exclusively for the
dissemination of electoral advertising.
(3) The audiovisual programmes referred to in paragraph (1) shall be realised and
broadcast only during the electoral period and, where applicable, during the election
campaign, in compliance with the provisions of the Audiovisual Media Services Code and the
Regulation on the coverage of elections by media outlets, approved by the Central Electoral
Commission.
(4) During the electoral period, political advertising and messages of public interest
shall be disseminated in accordance with the procedure laid down in the rules approved by
the Central Electoral Commission.
(5) Within the first 7 days of the start of the electoral period, media service providers
shall submit to the Audiovisual Council a statement on editorial policy to cover the
elections/referendum or a notification informing that they do not participate in the coverage of
the elections/referendum. Statements corresponding to the legislation shall be approved by
the Audiovisual Council and published on its website and on the media service providers’
webpages. Monitoring of compliance with editorial policy shall be exercised by the Audiovisual
Council ex officio, in accordance with the provisions of the Audiovisual Media Services Code
of the Republic of Moldova.
(6) In the election campaign for parliamentary elections, presidential elections and
republican referenda, national providers of general and/or news audiovisual media services
operating in the locality where the elections take place, whose editorial policy statements have
been adopted by the Audiovisual Council, shall be required to organise electoral debates and
regional or local providers have the right to organise them. In the election campaign for local
elections and referenda, regional and local providers of general and/or news audiovisual
media services, active in the locality where the elections take place, whose editorial policy
statements have been adopted by the Audiovisual Council, shall be required to organise
electoral debates and national providers have the right to organise them. The format, duration,
frequency and time of the circulation of electoral debates shall be determined by the media
service providers on an equal footing and shall be indicated in the statement of editorial policy.
Electoral debates shall be broadcast at peak hours, as laid down in the Audiovisual Media
Services Code.
(7) In the election campaign for parliamentary and presidential elections and
republican referenda, national media service providers who will reflect the election campaign,
the list of which is updated and made public by the Audiovisual Council, shall give electoral
competitors or referendum participants free of charge 5 minutes of television broadcasting and
10 minutes of sound broadcasting services for the entire election campaign in order to display
electoral programmes and inform voters. This airtime may not be used to disseminate electoral
advertising.
(8) In parliamentary and presidential elections and republican referenda, public media
service providers shall provide electoral competitors or referendum participants free of charge
for one minute a day to place electoral advertising.
(9) For electoral advertising against payment, each initiative group, during its activity,
and each electoral competitor or referendum participant during the election campaign shall be
offered no more than 2 minutes per day on each audiovisual media service. The tariff for
electoral advertising may not exceed the tariff for commercial advertising applied up to 6
months before the date of the election. The airtime for electoral advertising against payment
shall be granted on equal terms, within the slots set by media service providers in the
statements of editorial policy. Media service providers not participating in the coverage of
elections and public media service providers shall not have the right to place electoral
advertising against payment.
(10) Within 3 days of the request, media service providers shall grant airtime according
to the order set out in the statement of editorial policy.
(11) The refusal to broadcast or publish, under the terms of this Code, electoral
advertising, whether in return for payment or free of charge, may be challenged before the
court.
(12) During the electoral period, the procedures for organising and conducting opinion
polls on the political preferences of voters and exit polls shall be laid down in a regulation
approved by the Central Electoral Commission. Only authorised opinion polls may be
published. The dissemination and coverage of the results of unauthorised opinion polls shall
be sanctioned in accordance with the law.
(13) On the election day, before 21:00, Moldovan time, media outlets shall not publicise
material, including interviews with voters, or the results of voters’ queries on electoral options,
interviews on the number of votes held by electoral competitors during the day and their
chances, including exit-poll results.
(14) Media outlets founded by public authorities, reflecting the elections, shall publish
free of charge and the media service providers, both public and private, whose editorial policy
statements have been approved, shall broadcast free of charge, at the request of the electoral
bodies, messages of public interest, in accordance with Chapter III of Law No 62/2022 on
advertising.
(15) During the electoral period, the Audiovisual Council shall monitor how media
service providers comply with the statements of editorial policy to cover the
elections/referendum. Depending on the technical possibilities, general media and news
service providers who, according to the measurements made by the specialised institution,
had the highest audience shares in the three months preceding the month in which the date
of the election/referendum is fixed shall be monitored as a matter of priority.
(16) During the electoral period, the Audiovisual Council shall publish monitoring
reports on a weekly basis and take decisions based on the results of the monitoring. Two days
before the date of the elections/referendum, the Audiovisual Council shall publicly present a
report of totalisation. The monitoring reports, as well as the totalisation report, shall be
submitted to the Central Electoral Commission and shall be placed on the website of the
Audiovisual Council and on the web pages of the media service providers monitored, at the
latest on the day following the public submission.
(17) Within two weeks after the date of the election, the Audiovisual Council shall
publicly present a final report summarising the way audiovisual media service providers
covered the elections/referendum.
JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS
Section 1
Challenges to the organisation and conduct of elections