Turmoil continues in Moldova’s “Selecția Națională 2026”: Dana Marchitan drops out of the competition and becomes the second artist to do so. What led to her withdrawal?
Moldova is in the midst of preparations for Eurovision 2026 , which will be held in Vienna, Austria. Following the unexpected disqualification of a contestant without explanation and the discovery that two singers were set to perform the same song, singer Dana Marchitan announced yesterday on social media that she is withdrawing from the competition. Both Marchitan and Katy Rain passed the initial screening and were included in the final list of contestants for Moldova’s national selection, “Selecţia Naţională 2026”, with two songs that sounded nearly identical. Marchitan was set to perform a song titled “Cry”, while Rain was to compete with a version called “Dance & Cry”. Both songs were based on the same melody, with minor differences in arrangement and production.
According to the rules of Moldova’s “Selecţia Naţională”, there is no restriction preventing two artists from submitting the same song. Nonetheless, this is an uncommon situation in Eurovision national selections, where a song is typically assigned to a single performer. Marchitan stated she was unaware that both she and Rain had entered with the same composition, and that she was not willing to compete under such conditions.
Her withdrawal leaves the contest — which began with 37 participants — now with only 35 remaining.
הצגת פוסט זה באינסטגרם
The full long-list of Selecția Națională 2026:
- Adelisha – “Alegria”
- Adelina – “Putere în durere”
- Adrian Sîrbu – “Ne-am stins”
- Sasha Flowers – “Can do more”
- Sasha Flowers – “We fight till the end”
- Alexei Legasi – “Rebel”
- Annet Smirnova – “Sunt femeia”
- Artiom Topal – “Money”
- Catalina Solomac – “Pink Margarita”
- Chris Cross & Radco – “Taci”
- Cristy Rouge – “Bliss”
- DAYANA – “Doina”
- Bacho – “Tata”
- Lisa Volk – “Dragostea Mea”
- Emforia – “Tipare”
- Evghenii Avramov & ALenin Ivan – “Foc la ghete”
- Ilinca Siviroveanu – “Running through the rain”
- Curly – “Respir liber”
- Iulia Teleuca – “Luna Mea”
- Katy Rain – “Dance & Cry”
- Moniq Monua – “Like I do”
- August Black – “You make me crazy”
- Maxim Zavidia – “Alo”
- Nadejda Rotaru – “Winter story”
- Nikko – “Falling in love”
- Pavel Orlov – “Can’t say goodbye”
- Rodica Jabinschi – “Dependentă”
- Oliv Sky – “Bad dream”
- Sasha Bognibov – “On the right path”
- Satoshi – “Viva, Moldova”
- L-ERA – “Friends”
- Valleria – “Valerian Steel rai di ri di dam”
- Zeleno – “No pain no gain”
Some familiar names among the contestants:
- Bacho – Competed last year with Carnival Brain and their song “Semafoare“. Their song was the fan favorite, but unfortunately, the selection was canceled.
- Maxim Zavidia – Participated 3 times: In 2016, finished 5th with the song “La La Love“. In 2019, got 2nd place with the song “I Will Not Surrender” and in 2020, finished 3rd with “Take Control“.
- Iulia Teleuca – Competed in 2024 and finished 3rd with her song “Runaway“.
- Catalina Solomac – Participated in 2024 with the song “Fever” and got 5th place. Catalina returned in 2025 with the song “Demons“, she qualified for the final, but the selection was cancelled.
- Cristy Rouge – Competed in 2009 with the song “Women’s Winner” and got 6th place. Cristy returned the year after with the song “Don’t Break My Heart” but this time she didn’t make it to the final.
- Curly – Participated in 2014 with the song “Your Recovery“, qualified for the final, and got 9th place.
- Katy Rain – Participated in 2022 with the song “Lele“, the full results were not revealed. She returned in 2025 with the song “Timpul“, qualified for the final, but the selection was cancelled.
- Sasha Bognibov – Competed in the selection several times. In his last participation in 2025, he finally succeeded in qualifying for the final with the song “All-Night Party“, but the selection was cancelled and Moldova withdrew from Eurovision 2025.
- Valleria – Participated in 2024 with her song “RULE (rai di ri di)” – this song was loved by the fans, but she didn’t make it to the final. She returned in 2025 with the song “A Picture Of Myself“. However, she got kicked out of the selection cause she was late for the auditions.
- Chris Cross – Participated in 2025 with the song “Eu Vin“, didn’t qualify for the grand final.
- Lisa Volk – Competed in 2023 and 2025. She failed to qualify with both tries.
- Oliv Sky – Participated in 2024 with the song “Another Universe” but didn’t qualify for the final.
- Annet Smirnova – Competed in 2022 with the song “Toxic Eyes” and failed to make it to the final.
How will Moldova’s entry for Eurovision be chosen?
33 artists competed in live auditions yesterday, December 16th at 11:00 CET. The number of performers advancing to the national final has not yet been determined. Those who qualify will be selected based on their song’s quality, stage performance, and international appeal. A combined vote will determine the winner: one-third local jury, one-third international jury, and one-third televoting, following the Eurovision scoring format (1-8, 10, 12 points). In case of a tie, the public vote will prevail. If a tie remains, TRM will make the final decision.
For the first time, “Selecția Națională 2026” will be co-managed by two official producers — Serghei Orlov, a seasoned Eurovision producer, and Roman Burlaca, a renowned Moldovan director known for his collaborations with top pop artists. Together, they aim to give Selecția Națională a new visual identity, combining cutting-edge production technology with bold artistic creativity – a move intended to restore Moldova’s prominence on the European music stage.
Moldova at Eurovision: Distinct Identity and Style
Moldova has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 19 times without achieving a victory, missing only one contest. In 2020, it planned to compete with Natalia Gordienko and her song “Prison”, but the contest was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Gordienko returned the following year.
Moldova’s absence from the most recent contest marked the first time the country had ever skipped the event. Its debut came in 2005 with Zdob Si Zdub’s “Boonika bate doba” (in English: “Grandma beats the drum”), finishing in sixth place. Since then, Moldova’s results have fluctuated widely. Its best-ever result came in 2017 when Sunstroke Project placed third with “Hey Mamma”.
Moldova is known for showcasing songs that feature local musical flavours, proudly doing so in 2005, 2009, 2012, 2018, 2022, and 2023, achieving a place in the final each time – many of its best results were tied to songs with ethnic influences.
Aside from missing the top prize, Moldova has experienced nearly every position on the scoreboard – from third to last place. In 19 appearances since 2005, Moldova has qualified for 13 finals, with one notable non-qualification streak between 2014 and 2016, reaching its lowest result in 2014 with a last-place finish. Conversely, the country placed in the top half of the scoreboard in 2005, 2007, 2011–2013, 2017–2018, and 2021–2022. Currently, Moldova’s Eurovision outlook remains pretty underwhelming since its last participation ended its recent qualification streak.
Moldova has never won Eurovision and has reached the Top 5 only once, in 2017. with four additional Top 10 finishes – 6th place in Eurovision 2005, 7th place in Eurovision 2022, and twice finishing 10th, in Eurovision 2007 and Eurovision 2018.
Moldova in Eurovision 2024
Natalia Barbu represented Moldova in the first semi-final of Eurovision 2024 with the song “In the Middle”, after winning first place in the local national final. The song reached 13th place in the first semi-final, with only 20 points, and did not qualify for the grand final. This is Moldova’s lowest result in Eurovision since 2016, when Moldova reached 17th place in the semi-final.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Moldova’s 20th participation in Eurovision. Moldova joined the competition in 2005 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2017 when SunStroke Project finished in third place with the song “Hey Mamma”.
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Ilay Gaist is a leading Israeli content creator and writer specializing in the Eurovision Song Contest. He is a well-known commentator with extensive expertise in the contest’s history, rules, and dynamics. His passion for Eurovision drives him to deliver rich, professional, and innovative content to his audience.
Ilay holds a bachelor’s degree in Arabic and has a multilingual background. He also engages in cultural research, with a particular focus on global culinary traditions and the evolution of local cuisines around the world.
