Moldovans narrowly vote to secure the country's path toward EU membership

CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — Moldovans voted by a razor-thin majority in favor of securing the country’s path toward European Union membership, electoral data showed Monday, following a ballot that nearly caused a major setback for the pro-Western president, who accused “criminal groups” of trying to undermine the vote.

With 99.41% of the 1.4 million votes counted in the EU referendum held Sunday, the “Yes” vote stood at 50.39%, to 49.61% who voted “No," according to the Central Electoral Commission.

The “No” vote had looked to be ahead right until the last few thousand votes were counted from the country’s large diaspora. A loss would have been a political disaster for the pro-Western government, which strongly supported the pro-EU campaign.

On Monday, President Maia Sandu reiterated claims that unprecedented voter fraud and foreign interference had undermined the votes, calling it a “vile attack” on Moldova’s sovereignty.

“Unfortunately, the justice system failed to do enough to prevent vote rigging and corruption," she told a news conference. “Here, too, we must draw a line, correct what went wrong, and learn the lesson. We heard you: we know we must do more to fight corruption.”

Moldovan authorities claim that Moscow has intensified a “hybrid war” campaign to destabilize the country and derail its EU path. The allegations include funding pro-Moscow opposition groups, spreading disinformation, meddling in local elections and backing a major vote-buying scheme.

In Brussels, the European Union’s executive branch, the European Commission, said that its services had also noted Russian interference in Moldova, and it underlined its continued support for Moldova on its EU accession path.

"This vote took place under unprecedented interference and intimidation by Russia and its proxies, aiming to destabilize the democratic processes in the Republic of Moldova,” spokesperson Peter Stano said.

Stano told reporters that allegations of vote buying, the bussing of voters and disinformation are only the most recent forms of Russian interference, and that attempts to undermine Moldova and its support for the EU have been going on for months.

In the presidential race that was held at the same time, Sandu won the first round with 42% of the vote in a field of 11, but failed to win an outright majority. She will face Alexandr Stoianoglo, a Russia-friendly former prosecutor general who outperformed polls with around 26% of the vote, in a runoff on Nov. 3.

By the time polling stations closed at 9 p.m. Sunday, more than 1.5 million voters — about 51% of eligible voters — had cast ballots, according to the Central Electoral Commission.

Cristian Cantir, a Moldovan associate professor of international relations at Oakland University, told The Associated Press that earlier polls might have “overestimated the pro-EU feeling” inside Moldova and the referendum would have failed to pass without votes from outside the country.

“It’s going to be particularly problematic because ... it’s going to feed into narratives that are pushed by the Kremlin and pro-Russian forces,” he said.

U.S. national security spokesman John Kirby echoed Russian interference concerns this week, saying in a statement that “Russia is working actively to undermine Moldova’s election and its European integration.” Moscow has repeatedly denied it is interfering in Moldova.

In early October, Moldovan law enforcement said it had uncovered a massive vote-buying scheme orchestrated by Ilan Shor, an exiled pro-Russia oligarch who currently resides in Russia, which paid 15 million euros ($16.2 million) to 130,000 individuals to undermine the two ballots.

Shor was convicted in absentia last year of fraud and money laundering and sentenced to 15 years in prison in the case of $1 billion that went missing from Moldovan banks in 2014. He denied the allegations, saying the payments were legal and citing a right to freedom of expression. Shor’s populist Russia-friendly Shor Party was declared unconstitutional last year and banned.

On Thursday, Moldovan authorities foiled another plot in which more than 100 young Moldovans received training in Moscow from private military groups on how to create civil unrest around the two votes. Some also attended “more advanced training in guerrilla camps” in Serbia and Bosnia, police said, and four people were detained for 30 days.

A pro-Western government has been in power in Moldova since 2021, a year after Sandu won the presidency. A parliamentary election will be held next year.

Moldova, a former Soviet republic with a population of about 2.5 million, applied to join the EU in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, and was granted candidate status that summer, alongside Ukraine. Brussels agreed in June to start membership negotiations.

A man sleeps on a bench in a park in Chisinau, Moldova, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, two days before a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A girl holds a leaflet showing Moldova's President Maia Sandu while listening to her speaking to supporters in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, as she seeks a second term in office ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A poster of Moldova's President Maia Sandu that reads "I invite you to vote" is placed on the side of the road in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Young people ride a bicycle in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu waits while posing for photographs with supporters in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, as she seeks a second term in office ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A woman gestures while speaking inside a campaign tent of Alexandr Stoianoglo, presidential candidate of the Socialists' Party of Moldova (PSRM), on the final day of electoral campaign in Chisinau, Moldova, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, ahead of a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership that will take place on Oct. 20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Supporters of Renato Usatii, leader of the Our Party and presidential candidate, applaud him during a rally on the final day of electoral campaign in Chisinau, Moldova, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, ahead of a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership that will take place on Oct. 20.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Tatiana, 78 years old, signs her name to receive a stamp to cast her vote in a mobile ballot box in the village of Hrusevo, Moldova, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, during a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

People listen to Moldova's President Maia Sandu speaking in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, as she seeks a second term in office ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A woman walks by an European Union flag made of blue pebbles in Chisinau, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu speaks to the media during a press briefing after the polls closed for the presidential election and the referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership, in Chisinau, Moldova, early Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu speaks to people in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, as she seeks a second term in office ahead of a presidential election and a referendum of whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct.20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A woman mops a stage before an electoral rally of Moldova's President Maia Sandu in Magdacesti, Moldova, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, who is seeking a second term in office ahead of a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in Moldova's Constitution its path to European Union membership taking place on Oct. 20. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A man casts his vote in a mobile ballot box in the village of Hrusevo, Moldova, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, during a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu leaves after delivering a speech during a press briefing after the polls closed for the presidential election and the referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership, in Chisinau, Moldova, early Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu leaves after delivering a speech during a press briefing after the polls closed for the presidential election and the referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership, in Chisinau, Moldova, early Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu speaks to the media during a press briefing after the polls closed for the presidential election and the referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership, in Chisinau, Moldova, early Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu prepares to cast her vote, in Chisinau, Moldova, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, during a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

A man casts his vote in a mobile ballot box in the village of Hrusevo, Moldova, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, during a presidential election and a referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Moldova's President Maia Sandu, right, walks by Moldova's Prime Minister Dorin Recean, left, after the polls closed for the presidential election and the referendum on whether to enshrine in the Constitution the country's path to European Union membership, in Chisinau, Moldova, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

SAYLORSBURG, Pa. (AP) — Fethullah Gülen, a reclusive U.S.-based Islamic cleric who inspired a global social movement while facing accusations he masterminded a failed 2016 coup in his native Turkey, has died.

Abdullah Bozkurt, the former editor of the Gülen-linked Today’s Zaman newspaper, who is now in exile in Sweden, said Monday he spoke to Gülen's nephew, Kemal Gülen, who confirmed the death. Fethullah Gülen was in his eighties and had long been in ill health.

The Alliance for Shared Values, a New York-based group that promotes Gulen’s work in the U.S., confirmed his death on X and its website “with sorrowful hearts and humble acceptance of Allah’s will.” It did not provide details.

Gülen spent the last decades of his life in self-exile, living in a gated compound in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains and wielding influence among his millions of followers. He espoused a philosophy that blended Sufism — a mystical form of Islam — with staunch advocacy of democracy, education, science and interfaith dialogue.

It is not known who, if anyone, will lead the movement now.

Gülen began as an ally of Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan but became a foe. He called Erdogan an authoritarian bent on accumulating power and crushing dissent. Erdogan cast Gülen as a terrorist, accusing him of orchestrating the attempted military coup on July 15, 2016, when factions within the military used tanks, warplanes and helicopters to try to overthrow Erdogan’s government.

Heeding a call from the president, thousands took to the streets to oppose the takeover attempt. The coup-plotters fired at crowds and bombed parliament and other government buildings. A total of 251 people were killed and around 2,200 others were wounded. Around 35 alleged coup plotters were killed.

Gülen adamantly denied involvement, and his supporters dismissed the charges as ridiculous and politically motivated. Turkey put Gülen on its most-wanted list and demanded his extradition, but the United States showed little inclination to send him back, saying it needed more evidence. Gülen was never charged with a crime in the U.S., and he consistently denounced terrorism as well as the coup plotters.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Monday that Gülen’s death “will not make us complacent or relaxed. This organization has been a threat rarely seen in the history of our nation.” He called on Gülen’s followers to turn away from “this treasonous wrong path.”

In Turkey, Gülen’s movement — sometimes known as Hizmet, Turkish for “service” — has been subjected to a broad crackdown. The government arrested tens of thousands of people for their alleged link to the coup plot, sacked more than 130,000 suspected supporters from civil service jobs and more than 23,000 from the military, and closed hundreds of businesses, schools and media organizations tied to Gülen.

Gülen called the crackdown a witch hunt and denounced Turkey’s leaders as “tyrants.”

“The last year has taken a toll on me as hundreds of thousands of innocent Turkish citizens are being punished simply because the government decides they are somehow ‘connected’ to me or the Hizmet movement and treats that alleged connection as a crime,” he said on the one-year anniversary of the failed coup.

Ozgur Ozel, the leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party, said Gülen’s vast network remained a threat to Turkey.

“The founder is dead but the organization remains. No one should think that this danger has passed or is over. Everyone should be on guard against this organization," Ozel said.

Fethullah Gülen was born in Erzurum, in eastern Turkey. His official birth date was April 27, 1941, but that has long been in dispute. Y. Alp Aslandogan, who leads a New York-based group that promotes Gülen’s ideas and work, said Gülen was actually born sometime in 1938.

Trained as an imam, or prayer leader, Gülen gained notice in Turkey some 50 years ago. He preached tolerance and dialogue between faiths, and he believed religion and science could go hand in hand. His belief in merging Islam with Western values and Turkish nationalism struck a chord with Turks, earning him millions of followers.

Gülen’s acolytes built a loosely affiliated global network of charitable foundations, professional associations, businesses and schools in more than 100 countries, including 150 taxpayer-funded charter schools throughout the United States. In Turkey, supporters ran universities, hospitals, charities, a bank and a large media empire with newspapers and radio and TV stations.

But Gülen was viewed with suspicion by some in his homeland, a deeply polarized country split between those loyal to its fiercely secular traditions and supporters of the Islamic-based party associated with Erdogan that came to power in 2002.

Gülen had long refrained from openly supporting any political party, but his movement forged a de facto alliance with Erdogan against the country’s old guard of staunch, military-backed secularists, and Gülen’s media empire threw its weight behind Erdogan’s Islamic-oriented government.

Gülenists helped the governing party win multiple elections. But the Erdogan-Gulen alliance began to crumble after the movement criticized government policy and exposed alleged corruption among Erdogan’s inner circle. Erdogan, who denied the allegations, grew weary of the growing influence of Gülen’s movement.

The Turkish leader accused Gülen’s followers of infiltrating the country’s police and judiciary and setting up a parallel state, and began agitating for Gülen’s extradition to Turkey even before the failed 2016 coup.

The cleric had lived in the United States since 1999, when he came to seek medical treatment.

In 2000, with Gülen still in the U.S, Turkish authorities charged him with leading an Islamist plot to overthrow the country’s secular form of government and establish a religious state.

Some of the accusations against him were based on a tape recording on which Gülen was alleged to have told supporters of an Islamic state to bide their time: “If they come out too early, the world will quash their heads.” Gülen said his comments were taken out of context.

The cleric was tried in absentia and acquitted, but he never returned to his homeland. He won a lengthy legal battle against the administration of then-President George W. Bush to obtain permanent residency in the U.S.

Rarely seen in public, Gülen lived quietly on the grounds of an Islamic retreat center. He left mostly only to see doctors for ailments that included heart disease and diabetes, spending much of his time in prayer and meditation and receiving visitors from around the world.

Gülen never married and did not have children.

Associated Press Writer Suzan Fraser contributed from Ankara, Turkey.

FILE - Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen meets members of the media at his compound in Saylorsburg, Pa. in July 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Post, File)

FILE - Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen meets members of the media at his compound in Saylorsburg, Pa. in July 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Post, File)

FILE - Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen meets members of the media at his compound in Saylorsburg, Pa. in July 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Post, File)

FILE - Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen speaks to members of the media at his compound in Saylorsburg, Pa. in July 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Post, File)