Perfection to choose from – Newspaper Kommersant No. 174 (7375) of 09/21/2022

Experts from the Association “Independent Public Monitoring” proposed a number of ideas for improving the electoral system following the results of the last elections. In particular, experts propose to write down a clear algorithm for the actions of election commissions in cases where candidates are reinstated by the court directly during the three-day voting. It is also proposed to introduce liability for calls for spoiling ballots and introduce standards for the work of observers in e-voting commissions. Outside experts believe that the NOM’s proposals make sense, but do not solve all problems.

The Association “Independent Public Monitoring” (NOM) has prepared a report on the results of the last single voting day (UDG) with proposals for improving the electoral system of the Russian Federation. Recall that on September 9–11, elections at the regional and municipal levels were held in 82 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Heads of regions were elected in 14 subjects, regional parliaments – in six, elections of city dumas were held in 12 regions. This year, the regions themselves decided on the number of voting days; in eight regions, along with traditional voting at polling stations, it was possible to vote via the Internet.

According to the authors of the report (available to Kommersant), it is necessary to develop standards for the work of observers in territorial and district election commissions, as well as in commissions for remote electronic voting (DEG). Recall that the amendments to the electoral legislation, adopted in the spring of this year, abolished the institution of members of election commissions with the right to consultative vote at the level of precinct and territorial commissions, but at the same time allowed parties and candidates to appoint three observers per polling station instead of two, as well as to nominate their observers to territorial and district commissions. The same amendments expanded the regulation and monitoring of DEG.

In addition, NOM experts propose to allow members of the public who do not have observer status to be present at polling stations on voting days. Commissioners for human rights, members of the presidential Council for Human Rights and regional public chambers could use such a right, the authors of the report believe. Also among the proposals of the NOM based on the results of the last elections is to allow, in certain cases, access to recordings from video recorders and allow them to be viewed in public video surveillance centers. Recall that since 2021, the CEC has been using a new video surveillance system for elections: now the broadcast from surveillance cameras at polling stations is not openly available, but on a special service portal. However, not all sites are equipped with cameras, there are also sites with video recorders where the recording is being made, but it is impossible to watch the action online. Videos from such sites are provided to interested parties to resolve disputes.

In their report, NOM experts propose and define a clear algorithm for the execution of court decisions on the reinstatement of candidates, including in ballots, already during the voting. At the last municipal elections in Moscow, representatives of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation reported cases when the Supreme Court reinstated their candidates either on the eve or on voting days, but they were not on the ballots. The chairman of the Moscow City Electoral Committee, Olga Kirillova, however, then explained to Kommersant that, according to her information, there were three candidates, and the Supreme Court decided not to include them on the ballots, but to cancel the decisions of the lower commission and return the case for a new consideration. On the eve of the UDG, Oleg Zakharov, a member of the TEC DEG from the New People party, also spoke about this problem: at that moment, a trial was underway due to the removal of the list of the NL from the elections to the Pskov City Duma, where the DEG was used, and if the court had ruled in favor of the party , then the DEG bulletins could no longer be amended. Mr. Zakharov referred to the case of 2020, when the court restored the status of the LDPR candidate in the elections in one of the districts of the Pskov region on the second day of the three-day voting, on the night of the third day new ballots had to be printed, and the election commission did not find grounds for canceling the elections.

Finally, NOM experts propose to consider the issue of establishing liability for public calls to damage ballots, organizing and conducting mass actions to damage ballots: “It must be recognized that such actions, as well as public dissemination of calls to commit them, impede the normal conduct of the electoral process, negatively affect the formation of a culture of civic participation, and therefore represent a certain public danger. At the same time, NOM experts find that, judging by the results of the EDG-2022, the electoral system shows a significant margin of safety, transparency and reliability, despite “the conduct of election campaigns in the face of unprecedented external pressure on Russia from the collective West.”

Evgeny Minchenko, president of the Russian Association for Public Relations, believes that the NOM’s proposals “make sense, but do not solve key problems.” In his opinion, it is necessary to minimize the formal requirements for the documents of candidates and transfer the submission of documents to electronic form. “We also need the ability to collect signatures (in support of candidates.— “b”) 100% electronically to get away from the so-called handwriting dictatorship. The collection of signatures of municipal deputies in the gubernatorial elections should also be transferred to electronic form, including in order to avoid an excessive number of signatures.” Mr. Minchenko believes that it is necessary to generally reduce the volume of required signatures in support of candidates in the gubernatorial elections.

Grigory Melkonyants, co-chairman of the Golos movement (the movement is included in the register of unregistered NCO-foreign agents), considers the NOM’s proposals regarding the improvement of the procedure to be “meaningless” — the issues mentioned by the experts are regulated by law, “but everything depends on law enforcement,” or designed to “regulate the activities of observers “. “In my opinion,” he says, “it is necessary to return real competition to the elections — to remove a huge number of barriers and restrictions for candidates to nominate and register. To return to the precinct and territorial commissions members with the right to consultative vote, to expand the rights of observers and to return public video broadcasts from the precincts.”

Elena Rozhkova