Moldovan public TV chief resigns

Vlad Țurcan resigned on Monday as director-general of Moldova’s public broadcaster, Teleradio-Moldova, after protests and online backlash over the country’s Eurovision jury vote. The dispute centered on Moldova’s decision to give neighboring Romania only three jury points in the Grand Final held on Saturday, May 16, while Moldovan televoters awarded Romania the full 12 points. Țurcan said earlier that the jury’s decision did not reflect Moldova’s broader relationship with Romania, but he stepped down days later as criticism spread. Reports by The Independent and PinkNews said he announced the decision at a news conference on Monday. ### Why did a Eurovision vote become a resignation issue? Moldova’s Eurovision jury vote triggered the dispute because the gap with the public vote was unusually stark. PinkNews reported that TRM’s jury gave 12 points to Poland and 10 to Israel, while Romania received only three points and Ukraine none from the jury. The same report said Moldovan televoters gave Romania 12 points and Ukraine 10. Romania’s result carried added political weight because Moldova and Romania share deep linguistic and cultural ties. In comments carried by TRM after the voting controversy, Țurcan said the Moldovan jury’s attitude toward Romanian performers “is not the same thing” as Moldova’s attitude toward Romania. ### What exactly did Vlad Țurcan say before he quit? TRM published Țurcan’s response after the voting row, saying he sought to separate the broadcaster from the jury’s ranking. The TRM report said Țurcan argued that the jury decision should not be read as a broader statement about bilateral relations. PinkNews, citing The Independent’s account of Monday’s news conference, reported Țurcan said: “This was my decision.” The same report said he added that although TRM had distanced itself from the jury’s voting, “it is still our responsibility, my responsibility in the first instance, as head of this institution.” ### Who was criticizing the vote inside Moldova? Anatol Șalaru, a former Moldovan defense minister, was among the public critics of the jury result. PinkNews reported that Șalaru wrote on Facebook that “the only thing that matters is votes by ordinary people,” and called the Romania score “a vote among brothers.” Satoshi, Moldova’s 2026 Eurovision entrant, also weighed in after the final. PinkNews reported that he said the strong support for Romania in the televote “reflects the real opinion of our society.” ### Was Moldova even competing this year? Moldova returned to Eurovision in 2026 after TRM had announced in January 2025 that the country would not participate in that year’s contest. Eurovision’s official site listed Moldova among the countries returning for Vienna 2026, alongside Romania and Bulgaria. That return matters because the broadcaster, not the government, administers Eurovision participation. National broadcasters select juries and handle compliance with European Broadcasting Union rules, which is why the backlash landed directly on TRM’s leadership. ### Where can readers check the record for themselves? Eurovision’s official website publishes the Grand Final results and country-by-country voting breakdown. TRM has also kept up its own coverage, including the broadcaster’s earlier report carrying Țurcan’s defense of the Moldovan jury decision. TRM’s next formal step will be naming leadership after Țurcan’s resignation, while Eurovision’s public results pages remain the main source for the May 16 Grand Final vote record.