Prime Minister Munteanu Resigns, Bringing Down Moldova’s Government
Quick Hit: The unexpected departure follows weeks of controversy over tax reforms, MoldATSA and the management of state-owned companies
This morning at 9:45 am Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu announced on facebook that he was resigning. He wrote:
“Today I end my term as prime minister.
I accepted the proposal to be prime minister with a lot of responsibility and strong conviction that I can contribute to changing things for the better.
The moment I understand that I can no longer exercise my mandate in accordance with my principles and beliefs, I choose to walk away.
I thank all my colleagues - ministers, their teams and the people who worked professionally and faithfully.
I will continue to serve my country from whatever position I may find myself, irrespective of where I live or what responsibilities I may have, either in the public sector or private. I believe that duty to the country is not about a position, but about the commitment we keep.
Thank you!”
Emphasis mine.
This move came without warning and with no explanation beyond the cryptic allusion to his inability to “exercise my mandate in accordance with my principles and beliefs.”
His resignation triggers the collapse of the Munteanu government which came into office on October 31, 2025. In his 8 months leading the government, Alexandru Munteanu has remained a bit of a cipher. His team projected an image of quiet professionalism, rejecting normal public communications1 and largely avoiding any big announcements on reforms or legislative projects.
This public perception has come under increasing strain over the last few weeks against the backdrop of the MoldATSA scandal and the public backlash against the proposed tax reforms.
President Sandu’s Press Conference
Following the Prime Minister’s facebook post, President Sandu called a press conference for 11 am this morning. At the press conference she thanked the Prime Minister for his service and then immediately sought to debunk rumors about his departure saying:
“The speculation that ‘he wanted to fight against abuses and was not allowed’ is false. The Prime Minister had a free hand to lead the Government as he considered correct. He chose to leave,”
This was apparently in response to narratives circulating on Telegram stating that President Sandu gave the Prime Minister a list of “untouchables” in PAS who he was not permitted to remove - even in cases of corruption.
The President stated that “Mr. Munteanu is a good man” and that…
“I was convinced and I am still convinced that he has the best intentions, but I expected more involvement in complicated decisions, more presence to listen to people, to explain what kind of reforms we need to make and why we need to make them.”
Asked by the press what contradiction caused the Prime Minister to resign rather than compromise his beliefs, she stated:
“I don’t think there were any contradictions, at least these things were not expressed and exposed. Both Mr. Munteanu and I have worked and are working with honesty and integrity. (…) This week I had several discussions with the Prime Minister about the reforms that have aroused a lot of debate in society, especially the tax reform, but also the salary reform. I also believe that these reforms could have been developed, consulted on and explained better, so that we could obtain the support of citizens,”
She went on to state that there was no conflict with the Prime Minister on the topic of the fight against corruption or on the plans to restructure and reform governance of state companies. She stated:
“There was only one objection related to the interpersonal relationship with one of the members of the Government, there was a discussion about the interpersonal relationship with the Minister of Education,”
A reporter followed up asking if Minister of Education Dan Perciun could be a candidate for prime minister. President Sandu refused to comment, noting that constitutionally the next step is consultations with the parliamentary factions. She stated that during the process of identifying a new candidate for prime minister, Munteanu would stay on in a caretaker role.
What Happened With Dan Perciun?
Following President Sandu’s statements, Minister of Education Dan Perciun confirmed that he had a discussion with the Prime Minister on Tuesday saying:
"It is true, indeed, that I had a discussion on Tuesday with the Prime Minister, during which I expressed my thoughts on the subject of budgetary-fiscal policy, on how certain things that were not fully discussed in the Government were found in that policy and sparked very heated discontent in our society,"
He went on to state that discussions like this are necessary and useful and seemed to reject the idea that it contributed to the PM’s resignation. About his future ambitions he emphasized his desire to stay on as Minister of Education and continue developing reforms there.
What Comes Next?
While various opposition politicians have called for early elections, that is almost certainly not going to happen. President Sandu will begin consultations with the parliamentary factions next week and PAS, representing the majority, will have to agree on a candidate. This new candidate will need to form a new team of ministers and prepare a program of government for a vote of confidence in parliament.
How long this takes is a bit of an open question. Back in February 2023 Prime Minister Gavrilita resigned2 and her successor was named the same day. Within 6 days, parliament had voted in the new government of Dorin Recean. This situation had been building over some time and the actual switch of governments was a relatively stage-managed process.
President Sandu announced that she would start consultations with parliamentary factions next week. Prime Minister Munteanu’s resignation was, by all appearances, more unexpected, so most likely time is needed to identify a replacement.
If PAS identifies a unifying candidate over the weekend or early next week, then a new government could be sworn in relatively quickly. On the other hand, if there are divisions in the party and multiple candidates are angling for the position, this could be a more protracted process.
In the meantime, the outgoing Prime Minister acts in an interim capacity. The caretaker government has substantially limited powers and until a new PM is sworn in they cannot initiate or approve legislative initiatives3.
Analysis: Why Now?
Right now we don’t have any satisfying answer to that most important question. The morning’s events give the impression of an unexpected change but for the moment we don’t know anything concrete.
President Sandu’s remarks are telling however. She seemed to acknowledge that Munteanu’s technocratic, low-visibility approach had failed to build public support for the government’s agenda. They also showed at least some disappointment from her end on his engagement with the issues.
From my perspective, it has been very hard to get any real idea of what that agenda has been for the last 8 months. Over time, this has been chalked up by some to failures of communication. The disastrous rollout of the proposed tax reform showed it was something much more fundamental. Ministries were fighting in public and it became clear that highly consequential reforms had not gone through even the most basic coordination process. In the middle of this national argument about tax reform came scandal after scandal related to MoldATSA and the management of state-owned companies. Through it all, Prime Minister Munteanu was largely absent.
The role of the PM’s conflict with Minister Perciun remains unclear, but Perciun’s remarks on this “discussion” seem to imply that the tax reform was creating rifts in the government behind the scenes. Stepping back, the scandals at MoldATSA largely predate this government - with the key appointments made before he took office. The tax reform on the other hand is a political disaster more directly attributable to his decisions - either proactively or due to an overly hands-off approach.
Perhaps, Munteanu concluded that this job is not for him and it is time to give someone else a chance. Perhaps President Sandu, PAS or some subset of his ministers lost confidence in his leadership and encouraged him to resign. Perhaps there is another shoe yet to drop - either in the alluded-to conflict with Minister of Education Dan Perciun or with some new information related to the ongoing scandals at state-owned companies.
Right now we simply don’t know.
Recall - he refused to even put out a statement at his government’s 100 day mark, calling the tradition started by American President FDR an “outdated” and “Soviet” practice.
“was resigned” really. She’s never publicly stated that she was forced out but that is what happened.
Since most legislation, especially complex reforms, are initiated by the government this effectively brings the legislative process to a halt.