CHISINAU -- A key figure on Moldova's political landscape has vowed that his newly formed party will not form any bipartite alliance with the ruling Communists, according to RFE/RL's Moldovan Service.
Marian Lupu, a former Communist speaker of Moldova's parliament who quit that party after the postelection protests in April, now chairs the Democratic Party.
The long dominant Communists appear to have fallen well short of a majority in the July 29 elections, which were called after the parliament failed to elect a successor to outgoing Communist President Vladimir Voronin.
Speaking after casting his ballot, Lupu said a "bilateral" deal with the Communists is "out of question."
He added, however, that his party would consider joining the Communists in a "grand coalition" government in which all the parties in parliament were included.
If it could unite in postelection talks, the opposition could control a majority in the next parliament.
The Democratic Party was fourth among vote-getters as results continued to be tabulated, and could be a swing bloc in the legislature.
The Communists currently have some 45 percent of the vote as the strongest single party.
Some observers speculated before the vote that Lupu, despite his defection from the Communist Party, might have been willing to strike a deal with his former colleagues after the poll.
Marian Lupu, a former Communist speaker of Moldova's parliament who quit that party after the postelection protests in April, now chairs the Democratic Party.
The long dominant Communists appear to have fallen well short of a majority in the July 29 elections, which were called after the parliament failed to elect a successor to outgoing Communist President Vladimir Voronin.
Speaking after casting his ballot, Lupu said a "bilateral" deal with the Communists is "out of question."
He added, however, that his party would consider joining the Communists in a "grand coalition" government in which all the parties in parliament were included.
If it could unite in postelection talks, the opposition could control a majority in the next parliament.
The Democratic Party was fourth among vote-getters as results continued to be tabulated, and could be a swing bloc in the legislature.
The Communists currently have some 45 percent of the vote as the strongest single party.
Some observers speculated before the vote that Lupu, despite his defection from the Communist Party, might have been willing to strike a deal with his former colleagues after the poll.