minister-designate must
request a vote of confidence from the Parliament regarding his/her work
program and entire cabinet; prime minister designated 15 April 2001,
cabinet received a vote of confidence 19 April 2001 election results:
Vladimir VORONIN elected president; parliamentary votes - Vladimir VORONIN
71, Dumitru BRAGHIS 15, Valerian CHRISTEA 3; Vasile TARLEV designated
prime minister; parliamentary votes of confidence - 75 of 101

Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament or Parlamentul (101 seats;
parties and electoral blocs, as well as independent candidates, elected
by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 25 February
2001 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party
- PCM 50.1%, Braghis Alliance 13.4%, PPCD 8.2%, other parties 28.3%;
seats by party - PCM 71, Braghis Alliance 19, PPCD 11

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court (the sole authority
for constitutional judicature)

Political parties and leaders: Braghis Alliance [Dumitru BRAGHIS];
Communist Party or PCM [Vladimir VORONIN, first chairman]; Popular
Christian Democratic Party or PPCD [Iurie ROSCA]; Social Democratic
Union (composed of Braghis Alliance and the Democratic Party of Moldova)
[leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: ACCT, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE,
CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent),
ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Mihai
MANOLI FAX: [1] (202) 667-1204 telephone: [1] (202) 667-1130 chancery:
2101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Pamela Hyde SMITH embassy: 103 Mateevicie Street, Chisinau 2009 mailing
address: use embassy street address; pouch address - American Embassy
Chisinau, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7080 telephone:
[373] (2) 23-37-72 FAX: [373] (2) 23-30-44

Flag description: same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical
bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; emblem in center of flag is
of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and talons
carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its
right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is