CHISINAU. May 15 (Interfax) - Shor Party candidate Yevgenia Gutsul has won the election for the head of Moldova's Gagauz Autonomous Region, Gagauz Central Elections Commission (CEC) Chairperson Yana Kovalenko said at a press briefing on Monday.
Preliminary results of the runoff election indicate that Gutsul gained 27,376 votes, or 52.36%, versus 24,913 votes, or 47.64%, won by Grigory Uzun, an independent candidate backed by the Party of Socialists, Kovalenko said.
"District election councils will submit voting results to the CEC by 9 p.m. on May 15. They will be processed within 72 hours, and the CEC will hand over the documents to the Comrat Chamber of Appeals by 9 p.m. on May 21. The court will process the documents within ten days and recognize the election as lawful. If the election is found to comply with the law and either candidate gains at least half of the vote, the Comrat Chamber of Appeals will declare the election valid and will name that candidate as the elected head of Gagauzia," she said.
Regarding violations in the voting process, she said that "they could not have any effect on the voting results."
Gutsul called for strengthening relations with Russia in her first address after winning the election.
"We are a pro-Russian party. We want to remain friends with the Russian Federation and with other countries. We do not want any conflicts," Gutsul said.
She announced the intention to open an office of the Gagauz Autonomous Region in Moscow and negotiate the unblocking of agricultural exports to Russia.
Gutsul, 36, is a lawyer. She is married with two children. She has previously not been involved in politics.