The Eurovision scandal led to a resignation in Moldova
A scandal has erupted in Moldova following the "Eurovision 2026" final over the national jury's scores for Romania and Ukraine. Amid a wave of criticism, Vlad Țurcanu, the director general of the public broadcaster Teleradio-Moldova, announced his resignation.
Vlad Curcanu, Director General of the Moldovan public broadcaster Teleradio-Moldova, announced his resignation following a major scandal surrounding the Moldovan jury’s voting in the Eurovision 2026 final.
The reason was the scores the jury gave to Romania and Ukraine. The Romanian contestant received only three points, while Ukrainian singer Leleka did not receive a single point from the Moldovan jury. This sparked a wave of outrage on social media and a sharp reaction within Moldova itself.
Țurcanu stated that he would submit an official resignation letter to the TRM supervisory board. He acknowledged that although the broadcaster’s management did not interfere in the jury’s decision, responsibility for the scandal still lies with the company. “I avoided giving instructions to the jury members, and what happened is an extraordinary event. In our view, the jury failed to take into account the sensitive issues that exist between the Republic of Moldova and our neighbors—Romania and Ukraine,” he said.
According to Țurcanu, by resigning, he wants to show that Moldova’s position regarding Ukraine and Romania remains unchanged. “The fraternal relations that the Republic of Moldova has with Romania, as well as our gratitude and respect for Ukraine for its daily sacrifices, remain unchanged. Our attitude toward Ukraine is not neutral, and our feelings toward Romania can only be love,” the broadcaster’s head emphasized.
At the same time, he added that his decision should not affect TRM’s future operations or the implementation of the broadcaster’s projects.
Until the supervisory board appoints a new general director, Țurcanu will continue to perform his duties. His deputies are also expected to step down, including Andriy Zapsha, who served on the jury for the Eurovision final.
What sparked the scandal
After the results of the final were announced, social media users began to criticize the Moldovan jury en masse. The biggest outrage was caused by the discrepancy between the jury’s scores and those of the viewers.
The Moldovan jury awarded the maximum 12 points to Poland. In contrast, viewers gave Romania the highest score—also 12 points. Moldovan spokesperson Margarita Druta admitted that she herself was shocked by the voting results. On TikTok, she said she even considered refusing to announce the scores live on air.
After that, the voting became one of the main topics on Moldovan social media. People demanded explanations from the broadcaster and the jury members.
Even Moldova’s Minister of Culture, Cristian Jardan, joined the discussion. He stated that he expects an official explanation regarding the voting results. One of the jury members, Victoria Kushnir, explained the situation by noting that the scoring took place during rehearsals, not during the final televised broadcast. “Romania’s performance during rehearsals was weaker than in the final,” she said.
Kushnir also assured that she personally gave the Romanian representative “a fairly high score.”
Moldova’s Eurovision representative, Satoshi, urged people not to stir up animosity over the contest results and thanked Romanian viewers for their support. “Dear Romanians, thank you for your support and kindness! Viewers from the Republic of Moldova gave Romania the maximum score. This is honest public opinion,” the artist wrote on Instagram.
The scandal surrounding Eurovision has become one of the most high-profile in Moldova in recent times. Now, there is already talk in the country of possible changes to the composition of the national jury and the voting rules for future contests.
Moldova’s national public broadcaster, Teleradio-Moldova, officially stated that the national jury’s scores at the Eurovision Song Contest do not reflect the company’s own position.
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