The alleged deputy from the so-called supreme soviet of Tiraspol, Vadim Kravciuk, wants to run for the region’s leadership elections. The Tiraspol press refers to the position as “president”, as in Russian, avoiding the term “chairman”, used in Romanian.
Kravciuk’s citizenship of the Republic of Moldova was revoked in February. He is the first candidate to have submitted the documents for registration in the alleged “presidential elections” in the Transnistrian region, which are set to take place on December 13.
Kravciuk has informed the so-called electoral commission of the region that he has begun collecting signatures in support of his candidacy, reports IPN. So far, he has not been officially registered in the electoral race.
In order to be eligible to run, those aspiring to the Transnistrian leadership seat must gather between 2% and 3% of the total number of voters, which means approximately between 7800 and 11,700 signatures.
The necessary documents, including the signature lists, must be submitted by November 12. Until then, nominations can be forwarded, and the registration of all candidates must be completed by November 21.
Who is Vadim Kravciuk?
On February 25, 2026, President Maia Sandu signed the decree that revoked Vadim Kravciuk’s citizenship of the Republic of Moldova. The same measure was applied to eight other individuals who hold or have held positions in the unrecognized structures of the Transnistrian region, including the head of the local electoral commission, Stanislav Kasap, and his deputy, Elena Gorodețkaia.
Kravciuk was born on March 4, 1970, in Chisinau. He was the executive director of the Dairy Combine in Rîbnița and the general director of the Bread Combine in the same city. He also founded the company “Krampus”, and in 2020 he became a member of the board of directors of the Moldovan Metallurgical Plant.
In 1992, he participated in the War on the Dniester on the side of the Transnistrian armed formations, being wounded during the battles. He is a member of several veteran organizations, including the Russian organization “Boevoe bratstvo”. Since 2015, he represents the city of Rîbnița in the so-called supreme soviet of Tiraspol.