Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova Partidul Socialiștilor din Republica Moldova | |
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Abbreviation | PSRM |
Leader | Igor Dodon |
Parliamentary group leader | Vlad Batrîncea |
Founders | Veronica Abramciuc Eduard Smirnov |
Founded | 29 June 1997 |
Split from | Socialist Party of Moldova |
Headquarters | Columna 148, Chișinău |
Newspaper | Socialists |
Youth wing | Young Guard |
Membership (2019) | 15,892[needs update] |
Ideology | Democratic socialism (self-described) Socialism Social conservatism Moldovenism Russophilia Euroscepticism |
Political position | Left-wing |
National affiliation | Bloc of Communists and Socialists |
Colours | Red |
Parliament | 18 / 101 |
District Presidents | 9 / 32 |
Mayors | 144 / 898 |
Website | |
socialistii | |
The Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova (Romanian: Partidul Socialiștilor din Republica Moldova, PSRM) is a democratic socialist political party in Moldova.[1] A populist party,[2] it holds Eurosceptic[2] and Russophilic views,[3][4] both of which are reflected by its long-time former leader[5] Igor Dodon.[6][7][8] It is contrasted to like-minded centre-left European parties for its conservative views on social issues,[9] reflecting the country's strong social conservatism and the influence of the Moldovan Orthodox Church.[10]
Between 2005 and 2011, it was known as the Party of Socialists of Moldova "Motherland" (Partidul Socialiștilor din Moldova «Patria-Rodina», PSMPR). In 2021, the Electoral Bloc of Communists and Socialists was formed with the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova with the aim of joint participation in the 2021 Moldovan parliamentary election.[11] Due to its promotion of Moldovan language, the party has been described by the media in neighbouring Romania as "anti-Romanian".[12]
Moldova's russophile head of state, Igor Dodon, has been driven onto the defensive, along with his Socialist Party and the Socialist-led government, by their political opponents on several fronts. Opposition forces, acting separately for the time being and from different motivations (pro-Western, 'oligarchic,' pro-Romania) seek to remove Dodon and his government from office before presidential and parliamentary elections are held.
The Socialist Party is a clear liability to President Dodon on the international stage. Notwithstanding his party's mass social base and high electoral scores, which most European Socialists today could only envy, the Moldovan party is completely isolated from Europe's Socialist parties. The reason behind this is the Moldovan Socialists' embrace of conservative-sounding tenets on religious and gender issues, synchronized with the 'conservative' values mimicked by Russia's current authorities. Since Europe's Socialist parties have moved in the opposite direction on that agenda, they keep Moldova's Socialist Party at arm's length. Nor can Dodon's party communicate with Russia-friendly European parties of the right, because those would abhor the Moldovan party's Red trappings.