ACUM

Acum is the Romanian adverb meaning now. It denotes the present moment, or a recent moment relative to the present, and is widely used across Romanian-speaking communities in Romania and Moldova. It can express immediacy or indicate a transition from past to present, as in phrases like “acum suntem aici” (now we are here) or “acum câteva minute” (a few minutes ago). The word functions as a common time marker in everyday speech and writing and is part of standard Romanian vocabulary.

ACUM was a Moldovan political alliance formed in 2019 by two pro-European parties, the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) and the Dignity and Truth Platform (Platforma DA). The name ACUM was chosen as a branding term meaning “now” in Romanian, emphasizing urgency and reform, rather than an exact acronym of the partner parties’ names. The alliance ran in the 2019 Moldovan parliamentary elections on a pro-European, anti-corruption platform and sought to unseat the then-governing establishment. Following the vote, ACUM attempted to form a governing coalition but faced difficulties maintaining a stable majority, and the alliance gradually dissolved as its member parties pursued separate paths. Maia Sandu, a leading figure from PAS, was elected President of Moldova in 2020, further shaping the country’s political landscape. The ACUM project is generally regarded as a transitional moment in Moldova’s pro-European current, with its name continuing to be used in reference to the alliance and its member movements rather than as a lasting political entity, and PAS remaining a major political force in Moldova.