Russian regions ready for local elections - Central Election

MOSCOW (Itar-Tass) - The election campaign for Russia's
common election day due on March 13 is coming to an end. As many as 3,208
elections of various levels will be held in 74 out of 83 Russian regions.
About 24 million voters will take part in the elections.
The forthcoming common election day has been dubbed as "full-dress
rehearsal" of the elections in the lower house of the national parliament,
the State Duma, scheduled for December 4, 2011.
On March 13, a total of 51,685 registered candidates will vie for
20,452 seats in local parliaments and posts of heads of municipalities.
At the end of the week, the Russian Central Election Commission
reported that regional election commissions were ready for the common
elections day, referring primarily to 12 Russian regions, which will elect
their parliaments. As many as 4,712 candidates will compete for 547 seats.
"The average competition rate is 8.6 candidates per a seat," deputy
chairman of Russia's Central Election Commission Leonid Ivlev said. "This
is the highest rate ever over regional elections.
Dagestan is a record holder here, as twelve candidates compete for one
seat, Ivlev said. In the Kursk region the rate is over ten candidates, in
the Kaliningrad - nine, in the republics of Adygea, and Komi, the Kirov
and Tver regions - more than eight. Rates below the average are registered
in the Nizhny Novgorod region and in Khany-Mansi autonomous area, where
about seven candidates compete per one mandate. In the Oryol and Tambov
regions, the rate makes six, and in the Chukotka autonomous area only four
candidates vie for one seat.
All of Russia's seven officially registered parties are vying for
seats in regional parliaments, however, unlike the major four represented
in the national parliament, i.e. the United Russia, Communist Party of the
Russian Federation (CPRF), Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), and
Fair Russia, minor parties are represented in parliament not in all of
these 12 regions. Thus, Patriots of Russia is registered in six regions -
the republics of Dagestan nd Komi, the Kalningrad, Kursk, and Orenburg
regions, and the Khanty-Mani autonomous area. The Yabloko will take part
in the elections in the Kaliningrad and Kursk regions, and the Right
Course - in the republic of Dagestan.
According to Vladimir Churov, the chairman of the Russian Election
Commission, the number of election-related complaints is quite moderate.
But he voiced concern over the methods of canvassing. He has called on law
enforcement bodies to control strictly against illegal canvassing at
regional elections.
Sometimes canvassing campaigns use "methods, which are typical of
those living in prairie of a very big democratic country," he said.
Participants in election campaigns make experiments with "feathers,
organize GAZel rallies, use baseball bats, which is very typical for that
country," he said, referring to clashes between supporters of the
Communist Party and the United Russia Party in Arzamas and the incident in
Kursk, where somebody threw a pillow at the leader of the Fair Russia
Party Sergei Mironov. He expressed fear "this may end badly."
"I would like to demand from law enforcement authorities to punish and
prevent such cases and to undertake every preventive measure possible," he
said.
According to the Russian Central Election Commission, a total of
12,823 elections commissions have been formed. It is planed to open ballot
stations in remote localities, and aboard ships. Eight polling stations
will be opened in army units, four - at railway terminals. The commission
has published 24,137,236 ballots, and all of them have sufficient
protection.
The Vybory /Elections/ automated system is ready for the common
elections day. Moreover, five Russian regions - the Kirov, Kursk, Nizhny
Novgorod, and Tver regions, and the Khanty-Mansi autonomous area - will
use 1,164 so-called electronic ballot-boxes. They will be installed at 582
election stations. It is expected that more than 915,000 voters will be
make use of them.
Each Russian region has its own elections laws specifying the number
of seats in the local parliament, its terms, the sizes of election funds,
etc. Thus, the bulk of Russian regions have a seven-percent barrier a
party needs to overcome to be represented in the parliament. The only
exceptions are the Kirov region (six percent, and the Chukotka autonomous
area (five percent).
Also on March 13, capital cites of ten Russian regions, i.e.
Petrozavodsk, Syktyvkar, Perm, Stavropol, Vladimir, Kaliningrad, Kemerovo,
Oryol, Saratov, and Khanty-Mansiisk, will elect their legislatures.