Igor Grosu, Speaker of the Parliament and leader of the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), said the ruling party has not yet made a decision on whether it will participate in the November 15, 2026 elections in Gagauzia for the position of governor (bashkan) and for the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia, TRIBUNA reports.

Speaking on Jurnal TV’s “Secretele puterii” program, Grosu said the authorities had taken all necessary steps to ensure that the elections in the autonomous region take place without foreign interference or manipulation.

“We did not leave things unattended there. We exhausted all possibilities. We also facilitated a framework for discussions in Chisinau — in Parliament and at the Presidency — so that we could help them find common ground or a compromise on the specifics of the elections. That effort failed — we would reach an understanding during the meeting, and then everything would be cancelled,” Grosu said.

Regarding PAS’s potential participation and the nomination of candidates, Grosu said the party wants to encourage young people, new politicians, individuals who have not previously been involved in politics, as well as local opinion leaders who have remained engaged in recent years.

According to Grosu, PAS is looking for candidates who have not been indifferent to developments in the region and who have criticized what he described as the “capture of the autonomy by Șor and by the Russians through Șor.”

“We do not have a decision yet. We understand what our chances are there,” Grosu said.

Grosu also addressed rumors circulating publicly that independent candidate Alexandr Stoianoglo, who has announced his intention to run for governor of Gagauzia, would in fact be the government’s candidate.

“Obviously, that is false,” the PAS leader said.

At the same time, Grosu acknowledged that he has been positively surprised by Stoianoglo’s conduct during discussions concerning the organization of the elections.

“I want to tell you very honestly — we communicate very rarely with Mr. Stoianoglo, in the plenary. But I saw his performance during the negotiations on the elections, when deputies from the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia came to Chisinau. He was there as well, and he had a very correct position. I was pleasantly surprised,” Grosu said.

He added that he could not assess Stoianoglo’s managerial abilities, but noted that the latter had already announced his candidacy for the position of governor.

“I cannot comment on his managerial abilities. I saw that he announced his candidacy. What I would kindly ask him is that, when making such electoral announcements, he choose another venue — Parliament is not a place for launching election campaigns,” Grosu concluded.