Putin expected to hold majority following elections

Putin expected to hold majority following elections

MOSCOW – Russians from the Bering Strait to the Baltic voted in regional elections yesterday, the last big test for prime minister Vladimir Putin’s ruling party before December’s parliamentary polls and a presidential vote next March.

However, with critics at home and abroad accusing Mr Putin of rolling back democracy and muzzling opponents, some analysts said the Kremlin wanted a cleaner vote that would bolster the legitimacy of his “tandem” rule with President Dmitry Medvedev.

United Russia, which Mr Putin uses as both a source and a instrument of power, is expected to maintain majorities in the 12 regional legislatures at stake despite sagging support.

The Kremlin will use the elections to gauge the mood ahead of the parliamentary polls and the presidential vote in which Mr Putin has suggested he will return to the Kremlin or endorse incumbent Mr Medvedev for a new term.

About 20 million Russians were eligible to vote in the regional legislative polls, byelections and mayoral and municipal council contests in the country of 142 million people.

Inflation is the chief worry of voters and the government is struggling to balance the need to check it with the desire to speed up sluggish growth and the temptation to spend generously in a campaign year as oil revenues flow in.

Prices rose 3.3 per cent in the first nine weeks of 2011, severely testing the state’s full-year target of 6 per cent to 7 per cent.

“Without question the protest mood is growing, but it is not yet clear what direction it will take,” said Sergei Markov, a political analyst and United Russia politician in the state Duma, Russia’s lower parliament house.

United Russia still strongly outpolls the only other parties in the state Duma: the Communist Party; flamboyant nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky’s Liberal Democratic Party, widely seen as a tool of the Kremlin; and the pro-Kremlin Just Russia.

Opponents say United Russia has abused its power to get out the vote in its favour.

Independent monitoring group Golos has accused United Russia of violations in previous elections. It said it expected further violations to take place yesterday, including repeat voting and pressure by state bosses and university administrators to vote for the party.

“Regional authorities will have to fulfil orders to ensure United Russia high results despite its slipping popularity,” Golos deputy director Grigory Melkoyants said. “They will have to employ some tricks to meet these expectations.”

After eight years as president, Mr Putin steered Mr Medvedev into the Kremlin in 2008 to avoid violating a constitutional bar on a third consecutive term.

He is still seen as Russia’s paramount leader and has shown no sign of plans to give that role up.

Convincing United Russia victories yesterday and in December would further bolster the popular Mr Putin’s mandate.

While a significant decline in support for the party would not affect his chances of winning the presidency if he runs, it would hurt his image by signalling discontent with the power structure he has built in the past decade. – (Reuters)

90 complaints come to CEC during single election day

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16039748&PageNum=0

13.03.2011, 23.09

MOSCOW, March 13 (Itar-Tass) -- The Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) received 90 complaints during the single election day in the country on Sunday, CEC deputy chairman Leonid Ivlev told journalists.

He recalled that during the previous such elections on October 10, 2010 the CEC received 76 complaints. “But then elections of regional parliaments were held in four Russian regions, while today 12 regions elected their legislatures,” he noted.

According to Ivlev, as many as 18 complaints came from member of the Russia State Duma lower parliament house, seven of them were from LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky and another seven – from CPRF faction member Dmitry Novikov. As for political parties, the Fair Russia submitted 26 complaints, CPRF – five complaints, and LDPR – one complaint. “One complaint came from election commissions, and 27 – from voters,” he said.

The bulk of complaints came from the Caucasian republic of Dagestan, and the Khanty-Mansi autonomous area (eight complaints from each of them). Seven complaints came from the Tver region and another seven – from Kirov region, six – from the Orenburg region, and six – from Nizhny Novgorod region. Two complaints came from the Caucasian republic of Adygea, and two – from the Tambov region.

According to chairman of Dagestan’s election commission, Magomed Dibirov, the election commission received 10 complaints from election associations and individuals. “These complaints were of individual rather than systemic character. The bulk of them proved to be ungrounded after a heck,” he said. “In any case they cannot impact the voting results.” He also noted that today’s elections were smooth.

In the mean time, Leonid Ivlev has pledged that “all complaints will be considered in due time and if necessary will be sent to courts or police.”

Earlier in the day, he said that many of the complaints were “of explanatory of inquiry character,” i.e. asking to clarify provisions of the law, while some complaints looked rather dubious.

Turnout, Dirty Tricks 'Grow' at Regional Vote

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/turnout-dirty-tricks-grow-at-regional-vote/432465.html
14 March 2011

By Alexandra Odynova

Increased turnout and allegations of foul play were two hallmarks of the last big vote before State Duma vote in December, as almost 3,000 elections took place in all but nine regions nationwide Sunday.

Purported dirty tricks ranged from free moonshine and pop concert tickets to old-fashioned beatings and ballot stuffing, with both the ruling United Russia party — which is expected to sweep the elections — and the opposition pointing the finger at each other.

New legislatures were being elected in 12 regions: the Kursk, Kirov, Orenburg, Tambov, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod and Tver regions, the Chukotka and Khanty-Mansiisk autonomous districts and the republics of Dagestan, Adygeya and Komi.

Overall turnout "grew 3 to 5 percent compared with the previous elections" in these regions in 2006 and 2007, Central Elections Commission deputy head Leonid Ivlev told journalists Sunday afternoon, Interfax reported.

Early results indicated turnout was 40 percent to 44 percent in most regional legislature votes. In Dagestan, 70 percent of voters came to polling stations, the commission said, according to Interfax.

There were also more violations reported than in 2010 regional elections, the country's sole independent elections watchdog, Golos, said in an e-mailed statement. Most violations were related to voting outside polling stations; also, those who have absentee voting certificates are often allowed to keep them, which enables people to vote more than once, the group said.

Chukotka boasted an unusually high turnout of about 70 percent — which the Communists said was due to officials luring in voters with free tickets to an election day concert. A slew of pop stars, including Eurovision contest winner Dima Bilan, performed in the Arctic region on Sunday.

United Russia accused its opponents of dirty campaigning in a number of regions, including Kursk, Saratov and Stavropol. Most reported violations related to a smear campaign against the party that saw nighttime calls to sleeping voters urging them to support United Russia.

Election-related violence was reported in Kaliningrad and Dagestan, where police were on high alert to prevent clashes. A Dagestan lawmaker with the Communists, Alibulat Gasanov, was injured and his brother shot dead when unidentified gunmen pelted their car with bullets late Friday. Police said the attack might be related to the brother's activities, not Gasanov's re-election bid, but Central Elections Commission head Vladimir Churov nevertheless asked local police to boost security measures to protect candidates and their families.

In Kaliningrad, a Golos observer and reporter with its newspaper, Grazhdansky Golos was beaten at a village polling station, the watchdog said, adding that police were present at the scene but did not intervene. Local election officials said Vladimir Bogatyryov was expelled from the station because he made a scandal, but did not elaborate.

Another complaint was filed by two voters from the Kursk region, who said unidentified men attempted to buy their votes with bottles of vodka that turned out to be low-quality moonshine, Ivlev said. He did not specify which party attempted to purchase the vote this way.

The Central Elections Commission said Sunday evening that no serious violations had been registered.

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