Referendum flop

"The people have chosen,” headlines Timpul the day after a Moldovanreferendum on whether the people should elect their president directly. The plebiscite came to naught,explains the paper: only 29% of the nation’s 2.5 million voters went to the polls, but a 33% turnout was required for a valid referendum. This intended constitutional reform, the first of its kind in 20 years of national sovereignty, was desired by the Alliance for European Integration, the party currently in power. Their object: to end the political crisis that has been wearing on for over a year now, after four abortive attempts by parliament to elect a successor to communist Vladimir Voronin, who resigned back in September 2009. The country is now bracing for a dissolution of parliament and early parliamentary and presidential elections.