The CEC approved the holding of elections in new regions and decided on the timing of by-elections to the State Duma

The Central Election Commission (CEC) approved on Thursday the requests of new regions to hold elections and determined the timing of voting in the by-elections to the State Duma. In both cases, it was decided to extend the procedure for the maximum possible three days, but if in the new territories such a decision is explained by the desire to avoid crowding at polling stations, then in other cases, the main argument in favor of multi-day voting was the convenience of the voter. In total, the choice in favor of the three-day period was made in 50 regions, calculated in the CEC, and only four subjects of the Russian Federation intend to complete the procedure within one day.

The CEC at a meeting on June 15 unanimously approved the requests of all four new constituent entities of the Russian Federation to hold elections there on the September single voting day. The decision was made following consultations with the Ministry of Defense and the FSB, said Ella Pamfilova, chairman of the Central Electoral Commission. For security reasons, the regions are allowed to reduce the timing of electoral activities, but by no more than half, and their election commissions must submit calendar plans for the preparation and conduct of elections to the CEC. In total, about 80 election campaigns will take place there, the CEC calculated: in addition to regional parliaments, representative bodies of municipalities will be elected in the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions.

Elections in all these constituent entities of the Russian Federation will be held within three days, said Nikolai Bulaev, deputy chairman of the CEC. Moreover, by decision of regional election commissions, additional types of expression of will can be used there at the same time – for example, voting by groups of voters in settlements with which transport communication is difficult, and voting outside polling stations in territories suitable for this (the so-called voting “on stumps”, from which the CEC previously advised regions to abstain). In addition, Mr. Bulaev recalled, the law allows new regions to conduct early voting in hard-to-reach and remote areas. “We believe that in the conditions that exist today in the new subjects, this form of voting can be quite widely in demand,” the deputy chairman of the CEC emphasized. The decision on which settlements to recognize as hard-to-reach will be made by the territorial election commission. All these measures will help to avoid a large concentration of voters at polling stations on voting days and minimize risks, the CEC is sure.

Acting head of the Zaporozhye region Yevgeny Balitsky told Kommersant that other concessions are planned for the elections: in particular, it will be possible to vote not only with a passport, but also with other documents, for example, with a Ukrainian driver’s license.

This is done because many residents have not yet received Russian passports, the governor explained. He added that the list of identity documents for voting will be approved by a special normative act, but the final decision whether a person can receive a ballot using his document will remain with the election commission.

Voting in by-elections to the State Duma in four single-mandate districts will also take place within three days, the CEC decided. On this occasion, the members of the commission had more doubts: for example, Yevgeny Kolyushin called this decision a “step back” and opposed the multi-day voting, which was introduced as a temporary measure during the pandemic. But everything was outweighed by the argument about the convenience of such a format for voters. Apparently, the same point of view is also held in the regions, which, by law, have the right to independently determine the duration of the expression of will in their elections. According to the CEC, 50 regions have chosen a three-day voting period, three regions have decided to hold elections over two days, and four more have scheduled a regular one-day vote.

The CEC also approved the calendar of by-elections to the State Duma. According to the document, the nomination of candidates will take place from June 16 to July 10, they must submit documents to the district commissions no later than July 21, and registration will end on August 6. Not later than August 20, the election programs of parties and candidates should be published, and the official start of the election campaign in the media will be given from August 12. The electoral commissions must sum up the voting results at the polling stations no later than four in the morning on September 11 (when elections of different levels are combined, the commissions will receive an additional two hours). The CEC must determine the general results of the by-election no later than September 25, and five more days are given for their publication.

Anastasia Kornya, Elena Rozhkova