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A total of 12 candidates are officially competing for the position of President of the Republic of Moldova. The ballot will have about 35 cm length and 14 cm width. A decision on this was taken today by the Central Electoral Commission. “The ballot will have 12 rectangles, each having dimensions of 110 mm by 20 mm. The ballot’s length will be of 348 mm and 140 mm width. On the left side of each rectangle will be printed the symbol of the contestant with the dimensions of 15 mm x 15 mm. On the right side will be printed a circle with 15 mm diameter where the voter will apply the stamp VOTED”, read CEC secretary, Veaceslav Agrigoroae. // realitatea.md

According to a press statement, the “Action and Solidarity” Party (PAS) announces that it respects its commitment to the appointment of a common candidate for President of Moldova, and is ready to withdraw its candidate if the second poll shows greater chances for Andrei Nastase of PDA. At the same time, the party is confident that PDA will also respect its commitment. “We are confident that PDA will fulfill, in turn, their commitment. We call on colleagues to remain calm and refrain from unfounded attacks against the candidates of anti-oligarchic coalition,” reads the PAS statement. // Unimedia

“Dignity and Truth” Platform (PDA) has launched an offer to “Action and Solidarity” Party (PAS) proposing Andrei Nastase to be the common candidate of the anti-oligarchic forces for President of Moldova, while PAS will have the right to name a prime minister after early parliamentary elections. If this offer will not be accepted until October 13, 2016 at 14:00, then Andrei Nastase will withdraw from the race and PDA will support PAS candidate in the presidential election of October 30. // Independent

Former Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev will ask the court to be included in the presidential race of October 30. In a press conference, Vasile Tarlev said that by refusing to register him in the election campaign, the Central Electoral Commission violated the law and the will of the Moldovan people. “Together with my colleagues we will make the necessary effort to get Court’s decision to be included in the electoral race, even if this will be achieved with a few days before the election,” said Vasile Tarlev. He said that he will demonstrate that in the process of signatures collection from supporters and registration process not all the claimants were treated equally. // IPN

Socialist candidate for President of the Republic of Moldova, Igor Dodon, said in an interview with Radio Free Europe that the geopolitical factor in the campaign is promoted by the ruling parties, the rest is a battle between the opposition and government. “Some try to involve geopolitics in this race and, in particular, this is done by the governance. But mostly, I think this race it is a struggle between the opposition and government. The geopolitical factor could count in the second round, if it will be a second round. If in the second round will compete the opposition candidate of the left with the candidate of the right, then yes, it will be an ideological struggle, possibly with geopolitical character. But if the the opposition candidate will compete against the candidate of the governance then there is no chance of geopolitical play. Then it will be a fight between government and opposition,” Dodon said. // Europa Libera

In an interview with Info-Prim Neo, PDA candidate for President of the Republic of Moldova, Andrei Nastase said that the geopolitical messages promoted in the campaign divide the society even more. “Geopolitics brought as much bad as the politicians who divided the society on this criterion. People have nothing to eat, but they tell you on television about Russian tanks, about nonexistent customs unions or about European miracles. I want Moldova to become a full member of the EU, but do not want to lie to people promising them something that now is unreal,” said Nastase. // IPN

In an interview for the portal Tribuna, the PL candidate for President of Moldova, Mihai Ghimpu, spoke about the latest public opinion polls. “Surveys have always been fairy-tales for the Liberal Party. The current surveys on the market are either manipulatory or outdated, conducted in mid-September, e.g. IRI’s survey, they do not capture anything from the campaign or candidates’ messages. PL got about 15% in 2010, and the unionist electorate grew since then. In this campaign we want to persuade unionists that we need a higher percentage of votes to prepare for unification and to bring in the 2018 Parliament more unionist mandates. PL is the strongest unionist party”, Ghimpu said. // Tribuna

In the show “Pahomi” from Realitatea TV, the presidential candidate Maia Laguta, said the government is manipulating the electorate through surveys. “Surveys is a technique to manipulate voters. The ruling parties indicate to people for whom to vote. They do not fraud ballots, but polls. At the local elections in 2015 everyone said that they would vote for Maia Laguta. But what have they done? A few days before the election, they publish a survey showing 30% for Chirtoaca, and 30% for Dodon, while for Maia Laguta only 1%. This survey showed voters whom to vote for,” said the candidate for the presidential chair. // IPN