Fierce race in local elections in Russia
(Baonghean) - More than 5,000 elections at various levels were held in 85 regions of Russia on the unified election day. The votes were closely monitored by observers, attracting public attention, because the results this time will partly shape Russia's political future in the parliamentary elections in 2021.
Russian voters will elect governors of 16 regions and legislative assemblies in 13 localities and regions; elect city legislatures (city dumas) in 22 administrative centers; and hold by-elections to the State Duma (lower house of the Russian parliament) in four proxy constituencies in Khabarovsk, Novgorod, Sverdlovsk and Orlov regions.
 |
| Russian President Vladimir Putin goes to vote on September 8. Photo: TASS |
This local election is the most closely watched in many years, because for nearly two months now Russian voters have held large-scale protests against the Central Election Commission's removal of opposition candidates from the election list.
Protests broke out in Russia in mid-July 2019 after the Central Election Commission rejected the applications of many opposition candidates on the grounds that they did not collect enough signatures of support.
According to regulations, candidates in local elections must collect 5-10% of the signatures of city deputies and voters. Therefore, in this election, the scope of observation is wider, and all electoral processes take place under the close supervision of observers.
Although the Central Election Commission, as well as the local election commissions, recorded that no serious violations occurred, the initial voting results are becoming a controversial topic.
Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvenko declared the election campaign successful, transparent and highly competitive. After the official election results are announced, it is expected that 16-17 new senators will come to the National Assembly. “This is a new generation of officials, bringing a new breath. We have high expectations,” Ms. Matvenko expressed.
Meanwhile, some opposition politicians said that the vote on September 8 was not a real election. “There were no real elections - many candidates who could clearly win were not allowed to run,” Daria Besedina, a candidate from the Yabloko (Apple) party, wrote on Twitter. The candidate said that at the first meeting, she would call for the Moscow parliament to dissolve itself.