Meeting of Central Election Commission Chair Ella Pamfilova with OSCE / ODIHR Director Matteo Mecacci. Photo - CEC

Implementation of OSCE/ODIHR Recommendations to Russia Following 2003-2018 Federal Elections

In its six final election observation reports, which covered presidential elections in 2004, 2012, and 2018 and State Duma elections in 2003, 2011, and 2016, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) published 139 recommendations on how to improve the conduct of elections in Russia. 1 In the run-up to the State Duma elections in 2021, Russia has fully implemented just over 10% of the Office's recommendations. Somewhat more than one-third of recommendations can be deemed to have been partially met. More technical and procedural recommendations, as well as those related to operational and technological capacities of election commissions, have been typically tackled more promptly.

However, despite relatively frequent amendments to the legal framework for elections, the majority of OSCE/ODIHR recommendations have not been addressed through changes in laws or practice. In many cases, this includes priority recommendations and those pertaining to the guarantees of and exercise of fundamental rights and freedoms during elections.

A considerable number of recommendations are reiterated in the Office's reports on several elections, with occasional minor editorial adjustments. This testifies to the fact that the most relevant recommendations from previous ODIHR reports were never met. By including repeated recommendations, the OSCE/ODIHR signals the significance that it attributes to these issues for the quality of an electoral process indicates its firm position and willingness to see progress on them.

For example, the Office is consistent in outlining the inequalities in election campaigns and a grave problem of misuse of administrative resources, pressure on voters, and coercion to vote. The lack of independence of the election administration constitutes another central issue in OSCE/ODIHR reports. The Office also continuously points to insufficient media freedom and meddling of officials in media editorial policies, underscoring the need for independent oversight of media coverage to ensure equality among candidates.

Similarly, infringements on freedoms of expression, assembly, and association constitute a particular concern for election monitors. Among others, the 2018 European Court of Human Rights judgment recognizing political motives behind the persecution of Alexey Navalny by Russian authorities since November 2018 underscored the presence of restrictions on the exercise of freedom of assembly and association by citizens, something highlighted in OSCE/ODIHR reports in 2011, 2016 and 2018.2 The imprisonment of Navalny in 2021 and the ongoing persecution of his supporters lend this recommendation even more weight.

Among the five most frequently reiterated recommendations in OSCE/ODIHR reports are:

  • To simplify and codify the election legislation to clarify ambiguous provisions, especially concerning candidate registration, campaigning, and media coverage, and to facilitate understanding of the legal framework by participants in elections and by ordinary citizens;
  • To prevent the misuse of administrative resources and to ensure an equitable campaign environment;
  • To ensure full impartiality and independence of election commissions and to provide a more balanced representation of eligible political parties in them;
  • To establish an independent oversight body, mandated to oversee the conduct of media during campaigns, including balanced and equitable coverage of and fair access of election contestants to media;
  • To allow for direct accreditation of non-partisan citizen election observers. 3

All recommendations can be divided into 14 thematic groups. Their implementation is analyzed in ensuing subsections.

  1. Legal framework and principles of democratic elections

Most significant recommendations, consistently repeated in OSCE/ODIHR reports since 2011, are targeting state authorities, electoral bodies, and other state institutions and highlight the need to adhere to principles of democratic elections such as guarantees of freedom of association and assembly, free exercise of the will of citizens, and of ensuring a competitive political environment. Most of these recommendations were not implemented. On the contrary, the situation in these areas has deteriorated over the last 14 years.

Almost as persistently, reports suggest that the law on political parties should be revised to remove numerous restrictions. The recommendation to lift a number of discriminatory norms against political parties has been met in part; however, practical possibilities remain to deny registration to parties for political reasons. It is also still prohibited to create parties with regional or ethnic identities due to alleged concerns about possible separatism.

The recommendation to streamline and simplify the election legislation, including through codification, has been systemically repeated among key recommendations since as long ago as 2003. While it is yet to be fully implemented, welcome efforts have been undertaken in recent years by a range of state institutions, academia, and the non-government sector to develop a draft unified election code. 4  

  1. Misuse of administrative resources and official position

Since 2003, OSCE/ODIHR reports feature recommendations calling for decisive measures against abuse of administrative resources, conflict of interest for candidates holding official positions, and pressure on voters and media. Only one recommendation that encouraged the adoption by the CEC of regulations and instructions on the involvement of local and state administration officials in the conduct of elections has been partially implemented. Some positive influence of the CEC has been noted by citizen observers in this respect in particular after the reshaping of the CEC in 2016 and its leadership's attempts towards reclaiming public trust in the electoral system.

Yet, the situation has not improved fundamentally. The abuse of official position and public resources during electoral campaigns to serve the interests of some candidates remains a crucial problem. It breaches the principle of equality of candidates and parties and distorts competition at all levels of elections. The 2018 presidential election has shown that administrative resources play a key role in promoting candidates backed by the executive.    

  1. Eligibility to run

Since the early 2000s, the Office has been making recommendations to address increasingly unequal conditions and selective criteria for the registration of electoral participants. They have been calling for an equal and unbiased approach to candidate registration, simplification of registration and signature verification, and revision of a number of limitations of both active and passive electoral rights. Out of them, four have been partially implemented by now, e. g. the number of signatures necessary to nominate a presidential candidate has been reduced; candidates are allowed to correct mistakes in registration documents since 2006, and single-district elections have been reintroduced allowing for independent candidacy. In addition, in recent years, election officials have spoken out in favour of further simplification and 'modernization' of provisions on signature collection. 5 Among concrete steps in this direction, the procedures were somewhat eased through May 2020 legal changes allowing for the collection of a fraction of support signatures electronically, through a single portal of state and municipal services. 6  

However, many of these changes are mostly formal and do not qualitatively improve conditions for potential candidates. For instance, in 2018, the OSCE/ODIHR stated again that 'the blanket disenfranchisement of citizens serving prison terms regardless of the severity of the crime committed should be reconsidered to ensure proportionality between the limitation imposed and the severity of the offense'. Yet, restrictions of the right to be elected remain disproportionate to offences committed.

Notably, the situation changed from bad to worse with April 2021 amendments, as new disproportionate limitations of the passive electoral right were added in cases of about fifty criminal offences of medium severity. Under this restriction, candidates with an expunged criminal record remain disqualified for five years from the record's removal or clearance, which itself requires three years. Furthermore, the residency requirement for presidential candidates was increased from 10 to 25 years and the requirement of permanent residence was introduced for State Duma candidates. Both measures are at odds with international good practice and past recommendations. Finally, restrictions based on dual citizenship and past and current residence in another state have been retained despite past recommendations.

  1. Campaigning and media

Most OSCE/ODIHR reports keep repeating a significant bulk of recommendations calling for the strengthening of editorial and financial independence of state media, for the decriminalization of libel and insult of state officials, and stressing the need of ensuring a balanced and equitable coverage of electoral campaigns by all state-controlled media. The 2018 OSCE/ODIHR report has again stated a need for an independent oversight body, mandated to oversee free, impartial, and fair access of election contestants to state-controlled broadcasters. In addition, the OSCE/ODIHR points to the right to express views, including campaigning for a boycott and through peaceful assembly. The majority of these recommendations have not been fulfilled over the last 15 years.

A couple of recommendations pertaining to the institution of a legal requirement to allocate equal amounts of free airtime as well as to label paid campaign materials and to ensure that the CEC and other regulatory bodies oversee media conduct can be deemed implemented and partially implemented, respectively, in so far that these aspects are regulated in law. Yet, implementation in these areas remains inconsistent in practice. Two recommendations from the 2003 report that called for clarification of media obligations in the context of relevant Constitutional Court rulings and for repealing a requirement for some parties to reimburse costs of free airtime can be regarded as having been addressed through changes in law and practice.

In March 2021, the CEC was granted legal authority to regulate the production and distribution of campaign materials on the Internet and to request an intervention by Roskomnadzor, the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media, in cases of illegal campaigning online. Given the already broad authority of Roskomnadzor to block websites without a prior court ruling - a practice that is at odds with international obligations and challenges freedom of media7 - the new authority granted to the election administration may lead to further restraining and narrowing of campaign opportunities.

  1. Financial transparency of electoral campaigns

Since 2003, the OSCE/ODIHR has made two relevant recommendations calling for improving the transparency of campaign financing, including requiring the disclosure of sources of funding of entities making donations to parties and candidates' campaign funds. These recommendations remain largely unimplemented despite some marginal improvements in this area. This includes the introduced requirement to disclose payments of membership fees over a certain limit and the availability of reporting templates, in line with an aspect of the 2016 recommendation.

The effectiveness of regulations and oversight of campaign financing continues to be affected by insufficient powers of election commissions to counter shadow funding and varying and inconsistent requirements for reporting at various levels. In addition, illicit funding and activities in support of parties and candidates by non-transparent politically affiliated foundations, associations, movements, non-commercial and commercial organizations, including from abroad, constitute a major problem and remain underneath the radar of regulators and oversight bodies. 8 All this distorts the level playing field for contestants and facilitates shadow and covert funding of electoral campaigns, including by state-affiliated structures, something repeatedly emphasized by independent observers.

  1. Guarantees of political rights for women, ethnic minorities and displaced persons

Three of the OSCE/ODIHR recommendations related to the participation and representation of women were addressed to political parties, which have been called upon to include women on more electable positions higher in party lists and to pay greater attention to issues of relevance to women in electoral campaigns. These recommendations have not been duly embraced during subsequent elections and Russia continues to have a comparatively low level of representation of women in the legislature. 9  

In contrast, the situation with electoral rights of displaced persons has improved over the last 15 years. Among other measures, the possibility exists for persons without registration to vote at special polling stations. In addition, the re-introduction of single-seat races during State Duma elections and the lowering of the electoral threshold had some positive impacts on the possibilities for the election of ethnic minorities. However, the issue of hate speech in election campaigns, including targeting minorities, remains unresolved.    

  1. Voter registration and voter lists

The quality of voter registration is assessed overall positively by international observers. Notably, voter lists became more accurate after upgrading voter registration procedures in line with 2003 and 2004 recommendations. In addition, the ongoing process of development and implementation of the Single Federal Register, which is aimed at unifying all population records, might contribute inter alia to further streamlining and simplifying the management of voter lists and records by the election administration. 10  

These developments notwithstanding, the recommendations to improve transparency in the handling of voter lists remain unaddressed. In particular, in its 2018 report, the OSCE/ODIHR has pointed out that 'in order to enhance transparency, the CEC should be legally required to publish the total number of voters registered prior to and on election day. With considerable discrepancies in the numbers of voters ahead and after election day noted during the 2018 presidential elections, citizen observers have pointed out that the lack of detailed public information and clarity on the numbers of voters may have left room for manipulations and detracted from confidence in reported figures. 11

Regarding the eligibility to vote, the restriction of the right to vote based on mental disability has been maintained despite past recommendations and contrary to international obligations.    

  1. Voting process

Recommendations to improve the secrecy of the vote featured in OSCE/ODIHR reports recurrently, both in the 2000s and after the 2016 and 2018 elections. This included calls to introduce additional secrecy safeguards, to prevent group voting, to protect secrecy during mobile voting, and to emphasize its significance in the training of commission members and voter education. Another recommendation called for guaranteeing secret voting whenever new voting technologies are used, in particular in light of testing of online voting technologies since 2019. While the importance of secrecy is emphasized in information materials and campaigns by the CEC, the secrecy of the vote is still routinely violated; related recommendations could thus be considered partially implemented.

OSCE/ODIHR reports also continuously raise concerns regarding mobile voting, calling for clearer and more stringent regulations and guarantees to ensure integrity. These problems remain unresolved, as numerous complaints by observers and other stakeholders regarding genuineness and voluntariness of voter requests for voting at home continue to be reported.

Positively, the recommendation to abandon the practice of setting up special polling stations immediately prior to the voting day can be deemed fully implemented. Similarly, the recommendation to better regulate the use of absentee ballots was addressed by completely abolishing this practice and replacing it with voting at a place of temporary stay. The roll out ahead of the 2018 election and the increasing use of the "Mobile Voter" application, which allows voters to register to vote at any polling station across the country, is seen as having considerably simplified re-registration for voters and streamlined the management of voter records by the respective authorities.

The recommendation to pay special attention and to improve access to voting for voters with disabilities has been partially fulfilled. The CEC undertakes welcome efforts to increase the number of wheelchair-accessible polling stations; however, the realization of this recommendation in practice is often challenged by insufficient resources at the local level.

  1. Vote count

OSCE/ODIHR recommendations related to vote counts emphasize persistent issues with the due implementation of established counting procedures by election commissions and call for enhanced attention to these aspects, including in instructions and training for commission members. More than half of these recommendations can be considered partially implemented.

However, despite the fact that members of election commissions are comprehensively trained, the analysis of video records from the 2018 presidential election reveals that the procedures of vote counting, validating results, and the drafting of results protocols were in most cases not observed. It shows that recommendations to simplify the respective provisions in the election legislation were not followed. Instead, in recent years, the legislation has become even more confusing in this respect. Unimplemented also remains the recommendation to supplement results protocol with a line to include the number of voters added to the voter list on the voting day.

In its recommendations, the OSCE/ODIHR also emphasizes the importance of acting on any malpractices in a decisive and timely manner and of holding persons responsible for them accountable. The CEC has reported that between 2016 and 2020 over 50 members of territorial commissions and some 300 polling station commission members were dismissed due to established irregularities. 12 This notwithstanding, domestic observers have been noting insufficient enforcement, a low number of cases of disciplinary measures being applied, and commissioners involved in irregularities retaining their positions or being reappointed. 13  

  1. Independent citizen observation

Despite OSCE/ODIHR recommendations to eliminate barriers for the involvement of citizen non-partisan observers in the electoral process, the conditions for independent observation have considerably worsened since 2003. Various restrictions have been regularly added to the election legislation to further limit the ability of citizen observers to monitor the election process. The cumulative effect of limitations imposed makes citizen oversight of elections excessively cumbersome and in some cases virtually impossible.

The provision enabling NGOs to delegate observers to polling stations was removed from the Russian legislation in 2005. Since then, Russian citizens are forced to search for other ways of observing electoral processes – they can receive accreditation as election contestants' proxies or representatives of the media.

The 2017 provisions for the nomination of observers through state-controlled "civic chambers" cannot be considered as a substitute for genuine independent citizen election observation and therefore cannot be seen as addressing OSCE/ODIHR recommendations to facilitate citizen observation. 14

  1. Composition and work of election commissions

This group of recommendations points to the need to improve the impartiality and independence of election commissions from executive bodies, to change the principles of formation of election commissions, and to enhance the transparency of their work, including in the finalization and publication of election results.

Some recommendations, e. g. on transparency of handling of absentee voting and on preparing manuals for precinct election commission members, were fully met. Recommendations on publishing result protocols online and allowing access to election commissions' meetings for certain persons were partially implemented. At the same time, the problem of dependence of lower-level election commissions on executive bodies remains. Furthermore, the new composition of the CEC, which was established in early 2021, also raises some concerns about the independence of this body.

  1. Technological equipment of election commissions

Out of the two recommendations related to the use of technological solutions by commissions, one has been fully implemented through the introduction of transparent ballot boxes and by enhancing the use of ballot paper processing systems (KOIBs). However, the recommendation regarding independent certification of electoral software and equipment remains partially fulfilled.

In preparation for the 2021 State Duma elections, the CEC has conducted May testing of its remote electronic voting system, which is anticipated to be used in 6 regions. Apart from challenges posed to the principles of secrecy and external 'observability', citizen observers continue to note insufficient transparency around the technological solutions used and a highly centralized management of the system, with voting taking place through state servers and the blockchain network, controlled by the authorities or state-backed companies. 15  

  1. Complaints, investigations, and sanctions

Important recommendations on the need to investigate cases of implausibly high turnout in a number of regions to prevent repeated violations first appeared in OSCE/ODIHR reports in 2004. Since 2011, reports have been urging a thorough investigation into and legal accountability for all cases of electoral violations, including potential prosecution of commission members. Moreover, the Office recommended personal administrative and/or criminal liability for participating in multiple voting or ballot box stuffing after the 2012 campaign. Ahead of the 2021 parliamentary elections, the recommendation to introduce administrative or criminal prosecution of individuals for electoral fraud has been fully implemented.

The recommendations to investigate cases of abnormal voter turnout have been partially met. However, there appear to be no attempts made to investigate a "peculiar electoral culture" in some 15 regions where voting traditionally produces abnormal results. This became visible when analyzing and comparing videos from polling stations in the 2018 presidential elections with the results published in the media, with some irregularities having been acknowledged by the CEC itself. Nevertheless, this has not led to any real investigation or punishment of perpetrators. The 2018 report reiterated the recommendation to increase transparency in the process of investigating complaints and appeals.

  1. Police activities at polling stations

This group of recommendations can be considered partially implemented. It contained only two factually identical recommendations calling for a more detailed regulation on law enforcement in polling stations. However, the problem of insufficient understanding by police officers of rights and obligations of commissioners, observers, candidates, and their proxies remains. Moreover, police officers remain very reluctant to duly examine and respond to observers' and voters' reports of violations.

Conclusion

Despite frequent changes to the election legislation and marginal progress in some areas, the majority of OSCE/ODIHR recommendations have not been implemented. The opportunities were not ceased by the responsible institutions in Russia over several cycles of elections to follow up on suggestions of improvements and to bring the legislation and practice in closer compliance with international standards and good practice. Ahead of the 2021 parliamentary elections, many fundamental and urgent issues need to be addressed. First and foremost, they concern the rights of citizen observers, a level playing field for candidates and equal access to public media, and the misuse of state resources and official powers.

 

1 https://www.osce.org/

2 http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/

3 Notably, this recommendation has been repeated in the report on the 2018 presidential election, after instituting the nomination of observers by "civic chambers", since the latter are predominantly formed by the authorities and are not independent of the government.

4 For instance, in 2019, the Russian Foundation for Free Elections has published a draft unified election code developed on the initiative of the Central Election Commission (CEC) in cooperation with the Moscow State University, which was reported to undergo public consultation and review. The CEC foresaw the possibility of its adoption already ahead of the 2021 State Duma elections.

5 https://rg.ru/

6 http://www.cikrf.ru/news/cec/46187/

7 See OSCE/ODIHR Final Report on the 2018 presidential election, p. 15. In February 2019, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of Media expressed concerns with then-draft legislation granting the regulator further powers "to increase the supervision of Internet control and traffic, manage the public communications networks, and restrict access to information deemed illegal under Russian law".

8 See EPDE's Money and Politics - Need for New Rules of the Game, p. 10.

9 Lake https://www.statista.com/

10 The law mandating the establishment of a Single Federal Population Register has been adopted in May 2020

11 https://www.asi.org.ru/

12 http://www.cikrf.ru/news/cec/48675/

13 https://www.golosinfo.org/articles/145204

14 See EPDE's Conditions for Citizen Election Observation Ahead of the 2021 Duma Elections, p. 5.

15 https://www.russian-election-monitor.org/

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An undesirable cudgel

In the first three months of 2024, Russian authorities declared more organizations “undesirable” than in the full year of 2022.

The law on undesirable organizations was adopted in 2015. Foreign NGOs labeled “undesirable” are banned from establishing legal entities, disseminating information and implementing programs in Russia.

This long read examines how the legislation on undesirable organizations has evolved since then and how the law is enforced today.

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#Commentary

Russian opposition: A strategic impasse

The current state of opposition politics in Russia is paradoxical. Despite commanding considerable resources, the opposition has not had any strategic or even tactical successes for a long time.

In this essay, a political scientist discusses the impasse in which the Russian opposition finds itself and outlines three areas for strategic discussion about its future.

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#E-Day

Vote report. How Kremlin uses social media to control and boost turnout

REM commissioned an independent team of analysts to monitor Russia's leading social networks, VKontakte and Telegram, to show how the Kremlin's propaganda machine works on social media.

Here are the results of social media monitoring during the voting days on March 16-18, 2024.

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Electoral anomaly in Cyprus. How Foreign Ministry and CEC fabricated 40,000 votes for Putin

We collected evidence demonstrating why the presidential vote 2024 in Cyprus can be considered the largest overseas electoral fraud in Russia's modern history.

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#E-Day

Fire, ink, Noon against Putin: How Russians resisted illegitimate elections

Russia's three-day presidential vote 2024 seemed to be the most non-transparent in its history.

In this article, we provide an overview of the civic resistance at polls during the voting days.

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#E-Day, Falsification

22 million fake votes for Putin? How Kremlin rigged the election results 2024

Various methods of data analysis can be used to detect electoral fraud.

Several investigative teams counted that at least 22 million votes — a third of the 65 million ballots cast for Vladimir Putin — were cast fraudulently. Keep reading to find out how it works.

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#E-Day

Statement on the Russian presidential elections 2024

Based on Golos observers' reports, REM summarizes the three-day presidential vote results and reports on electoral violations.

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#E-Day

Express review of the third voting day on 17 March

Based on the Golos report, REM summarizes the key trends observed during the third voting day of the presidential election 2024.

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#E-Day

Express review of the second and beginning of the third voting days on 16-17 March

Based on the Golos report, REM summarizes key trends observed during the second and the beginning of the third voting days of the presidential election 2024.

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#E-Day

Express review of the first voting day on 15 March

Based on the Golos report, REM summarizes the key trends observed during the first voting day of the presidential election 2024.

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Russia uses social media as a major campaigning tool in its presidential elections

REM commissioned an independent team of analysts to monitor Russia's leading social networks, VKontakte and Telegram, to show how the Kremlin's propaganda machine works on social media.

Here we present the main findings, fascinating data, and diagrams revealing the mechanisms behind this massive propaganda machine.

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#E-Day

Election update VII. The campaign results: Russian authorities make the election run dry

In this article, REM summarizes the results of the presidential election campaign 2024, focusing on agitation and administrative mobilization.

The text is based on the respective report published by the election watchdog Golos.

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How the authorities allure Russians to the election to increase the turnout

In regimes such as Russia's, a typical voter lacks motivation to participate in the elections due to the high predictability of the outcome.

At the same time, election organizers need to ensure a high turnout to show that the society is not tired of its national leader even after decades of his rule.

How do they do it? Find out in this long read.

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Navigating opposition strategies in presidential election 2024

As the presidential vote looms, Russian opposition is trying to develop the most sensible voting strategy.

Although the whole setup is highly orchestrated, three options are on the table. What are they?

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Who is Vladislav Davankov – a new hope for opposition in the presidential election?

After the CEC refused to register Ekaterina Duntsova and Boris Nadezhdin, it became clear - in presidential election 2024, there will be no one on the ballot who opposes the war in Ukraine and criticizes the government.

Nevertheless, prominent opposition leaders continue to agitate Russians to go to the polls and vote for "anyone but Putin". The most obvious choice for many is Vladislav Davankov, a presidential candidate from the New People party.

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In Memoriam: Alexei Navalny (1976 - 2024)

Reflecting on Alexei Navalny's political journey, this text recognizes his substantial impact on Russian elections - for both the past and probably the future.

Navalny played a crucial part in enlightening Russian society about elections through his campaigns, emerging as a symbol of will and hope for the most thoughtful segment of the population.

His legacy leaves an enduring mark on the landscape of Russian politics, which will not disappear with his murder.

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Election update VI. Results of presidential elections 2024 candidates registration

Golos, the Movement in defense of voters' rights, has published a report summing up the results of candidates' nomination and registration during the Russian presidential election campaign 2024.

In this review, we share the main takeaways.

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How voter signatures collection turned into an impassable barrier for the opposition

Boris Nadezhdin, an anti-war candidate for the Russian presidency, was not registered as such by the Russian Central Election Commission.

Being nominee of a non-parliamentary party, he needed to submit 105.000 signatures of Russian citizens in support of his candidacy. He did so, but the CEC invalidated a signification part of them.

We explain how Russian election commissions use the signatures as a tool to eliminate undesirable candidates.

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Statement. Russia has declared REM an ‘undesirable organization’

On 1 February 2024, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office declared the Russian Election Monitor a so-called ‘undesirable organization’.

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Who is Boris Nadezhdin – the anti-war candidate for the Russian presidency?

Many are convinced that Nadezhdin's nomination is a well thought out plan orchestrated by the presidential administration. Even his surname has roots in the word "hope" in Russian.

Yet, these rumors have not prevented Nadezhdin from gaining almost unanimous support of Russian opposition and eventually becoming the only presidential hopeful with anti-war agenda.

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#Commentary

Presidential elections 2024: Does the opposition have a chance?

REM asked a political analyst whether the opposition, both systemic and exiled, has a chance for success in the upcoming presidential election.

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It’s the taking part that counts. What strategy will the opposition have for the presidential elections?

On January 14, representatives of Russian exiled opposition participated in a live broadcast on TV Rain to discuss their strategy for the upcoming elections in March 2024.

REM publishes a short summary of participants’ suggestions.

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Election update V. Putin's presidential campaign has been rigged from the start

Russian CEC adopted regulations for candidates to run for the presidency. Predictably, not all applicants were able to obtain the status of a registered candidate. Meanwhile, the election campaign of incumbent President Vladimir Putin started with violations of electoral legislation.

In this review, we briefly recap the most significant events of late 2023 and early 2024.

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#Commentary

Presidential elections 2024: Is there going to be a change in Russia?

REM asked a political analyst about socio-cultural differences between Russian regions and how they affect the voting results.

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Dissent of the loyal: Women’s protest on the eve of the presidential campaign in Russia

After 600 days of genocidal war in Ukraine, dozens of women - mothers, wives and sisters - attempted to rally demanding the return of their loved ones home.

Any manifestation of dissent is an unlikely event these days in Russia due to the highly repressive environment and immediate crackdown on any instance of public discontent.

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How the Russian opposition is preparing for 2024 presidential elections

Vladimir Putin is to stand for a fifth term. Little doubt remains that Kremlin will make every effort to keep him in power.

Can the upcoming vote become a window of opportunity for a democratic regime change?

Here we explain how the quite fragmented Russian opposition intends to act in the presidential elections 2024 and what it recommends to the voters.

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Election update IV. Russia's presidential campaign is gathering pace

In this report, we recount the most significant November 2023 developments related to the presidential elections 2024.

Among them are Putin's presidential bid, test of e-voting, amendments to legislation on presidential elections and political “cleansings” in Russian regions.

The report is based on a regular news digest by the Golos Movement for Defense of Voters' Rights.

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Ekaterina Duntsova with dove of peace, the symbol of her campaign

Who is Ekaterina Duntsova – a candidate for the Russian presidency?

“Every day the life of ordinary Russians is becoming more difficult. Citizens cannot freely express their opinion if it does not coincide with the position of the authorities; the number of political prisoners is growing, hundreds of thousands of people have been forced out of the country. <...>

“Military operations” on the territory of neighboring states lead to imminent isolation and degradation”, her campaign website says.

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Russian presidential elections 2024: Is resistance at polls possible?

The election on 17 March 2024 will be the first presidential election during the war in recent Russian history. Further, it will be the first presidential election after the constitutional amendments 2020 that nullified the count of consecutive presidential terms and allowed Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036.

We asked an expert if there is any room for maneuver for opposition voters, given the unprecedented level of political constraints.

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"We’ll have no time to celebrate the victory before the great lent"

In March 2024 election, Vladimir Putin should receive at least 80% of the votes with a turnout of 80%. According to “Verstka”, these are the benchmarks that the Kremlin's domestic policy bloc is setting for the Russian authorities.

The campaign slogan consists of three words: “Pride. Hope. Confidence”. The heroes of the “Special Military Operation” will also be invited to become Putin's confidants; however, the main focus won’t be set on them or on the war itself.

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#E-Day

Election update III. The presidential campaign in Russia has started

In this one-pager, REM recounts the most significant October 2023 events signaling the start of the campaign.

The text is based on an analytical report prepared by experts and published on the Golos Movement for Defense of Voters' Rights website.

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The first post-Putin elections: What they might look like

How to organize a fair voting system in post-Putin Russia? How elections should be arranged and who should be responsible for this? What principles of representation should be taken into account?

Political scientist Grigory Golosov discusses these and other questions in this article.

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#Commentary

Opposition coalition: A good thing or “To hell with it”?

On 25 September, supporters of Alexei Navalny published a large text in which he rejected a coalition with the rest of the opposition. On the same day, Maxim Katz released a video where he disagreed with Navalny and called on “dissenters” to unite before the presidential elections in 2024.

In this article, political scientist Grigory Golosov explains which of the two strategies is more effective, and whether political coalitions in modern Russia make any sense at all.

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Free elections post-Putin: Not a cure-all

The demand for free elections should be an indisputable cornerstone of any democratic reform program. That is why it is a common belief that the first order of business after the fall of the current regime in Russia should be to conduct free nationwide elections.

Political scientist Grigory Golosov argues that despite the importance of elections, this issue should not be the first on the agenda and explains why.

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Falsification

Online elections in Russia. What to expect from them?

Over the span of several election cycles, e-voting in Russia has proved to be a black box serving the regime’s needs.

After its launch in just a handful of regions, it is now expected to become available to all Russians in the 2024 presidential elections to facilitate fraud and deliver an overwhelming vote share for Vladimir Putin.

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Three politicians who opposed the war and won the elections

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, most deputies who openly disagreed with Putin's war were sent to pre-trial detention centers or 'squeezed out' of the country.

However, despite the total suppression of the freedom of speech and assembly, there are still municipal politicians in Russia who openly oppose the war and win local elections.

We share the stories of three such heroes.

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Putin’s electoral theatre: Past, present and future

On 8-10 September 2023, Russia held local elections in two dozen different regions. The Kremlin could have easily canceled them by declaring martial law. Instead, elections were held in the newly occupied areas of Ukraine despite martial law. This suggests that Putin’s regime still finds sham elections useful.

This essay provides a brief history of elections in post-Soviet Russia, exploring the latest example of the Kremlin’s sham democracy and sketches the prospects of political changes.

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#Commentary

Elections without change?

Do observers in Russia possess the tools to maintain independent oversight of elections? How has the war influenced the pre-election campaign? Can the recent vote even be described as an election? What is the Russian government's motive for holding such “elections”, and what might we anticipate from the 2024 presidential campaign?

To find out, read this interview with experts.

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Elections 2023 appear even less free and fair than before

8-10 September in Russia were days of elections of State Duma deputies in four districts, heads of 21 regions, deputies of 16 regional parliaments, 12 city councils of regional capitals, as well as elections in the occupied territories and numerous local elections.

REM summarizes the main conclusions from the observation.

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What are the opportunities for the opposition in Russian elections?

The electoral and civil rights legislation in Russia is getting stricter year by year, leaving very little room for oppositional politics. What can opponents of the regime achieve in the face of constantly introduced obstacles?

In this article, we reflect on whether there is any room left for opposition politicians in Russia, and if it makes sense for them to participate in elections at all.

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Spoilers and doppelgängers in Russian elections

The practice of nominating namesake candidates or similar-looking candidates is widely used in Russian elections.

In this article, we explain how this electoral technology works to mislead the voter and pull votes away from the opposition.

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What are the specifics of Russian parliamentarism?

Do elections have any value in a country with strong repressive machinery where any politician whom the authorities may consider dangerous can be placed in jail?

The author of this article is convinced that elections in Russia present not only a high-cost ritual spectacle simulating democracy but also largely shape the interaction between the state and society.

Keep reading to find out more.

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We are observing a decline in the willingness of parties to participate in elections

Parties are reluctant to participate in elections to regional and municipal assemblies, an expert report concludes. They understand the impossibility of fair competition and do not want to invest effort in fighting the ruling party. Further, the elections in the occupied territories cannot be considered legitimate either legally or procedurally.

Read more about the results of the nomination of candidates for deputies of local and regional parliaments.

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‘Golos’ summarized the nomination of candidates for the 2023 gubernatorial elections

The report’s primary conclusion aligns with expert forecasts: genuine competition between candidates is anticipated in only one region, the Republic of Khakassia, out of the 21 regions that participate in the September elections.

Read this report summary for more statistics and expert insights.

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A slow death of municipal autonomy in Russia

This article delves into the process of elimination of municipal autonomy from the 2010s to the present, leading us through a series of reforms that have helped Kremlin build the so-called ‘power vertical’.

A gradual transition from weak, but somewhat independent local governance toward loyal local appointees contributes to our understanding of how political decision-making works in high-capacity authoritarian states like Russia.

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If there is Putin, there are no debates

This year, Khakassia emerged as the sole Russian region where its governor, communist Valentin Konovalov, invited his adversary, Sergey Sokol from United Russia, to a debate. While the audience hoped for a substantive political exchange, the discourse was dominated by accusations of mudslinging and chasing hype.

This article explores how debates in modern Russia have changed, why gubernatorial candidates avoid open discussions with opponents, and what the future holds for debates.

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Why the war did not become the main topic of the election campaign

In the past, parties and candidates would offer distinct promises to voters, address social concerns, and even position themselves against the government. However, the current campaigns appear lackluster and devoid of a clear message. Even the topic of war is scarcely touched upon by the primary candidates.

This REM review explores why the war in Ukraine hasn't emerged as the predominant topic of the recent election campaign.

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United Russia dominates district electoral commissions, where most electoral fraud originates

A recently published "Golos" report details who holds control over the precinct electoral commissions across Russian regions. REM provides insights into the key findings of the report, emphasizing its significance as we approach the 2023 elections and the 2024 presidential elections.

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Voting under bullets and shells

Holding elections in the occupied territories of Ukraine on 8-10 September is a daunting task for the Russian authorities.

This long read explores how the ongoing military actions affect election preparations and how the Kremlin is making sure that there are no surprises.

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Co-chair of Russian election watchdog Golos detained ahead of elections

Mass searches and interrogations of Golos activists took place across the country. What do we know about that by now?

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Election update II. Legislative changes make it easier for "United Russia" to win elections

On the eve of the elections, Russian authorities adopted a new package of amendments to the electoral legislation. The changes aim to help candidates from the ruling party win in the September elections.

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#Commentary

"The current government is not going anywhere". On political changes in Russia

Wagner's rebellion showed how weak President Putin's support base is. However, no real political changes followed. Are they even possible in modern Russia, and could elections - an instrument specially invented by the democratic world for this purpose - contribute to the changes?

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The Just Russia party distances itself from regional elections following the Wagner mutiny

News on Just Russia's withdrawal of electoral activity in the regions began to emerge shortly after Prigozhin's uprising in June 2023. Expert opinions differ: some believe it signals the falling from favor for the systemic opposition, while others argue that the party uses the uprising as a rhetorical cover-up for the internal splits.

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Election update I. There will be no competition in the Russian gubernatorial elections 2023

In light of the gubernatorial elections to be held in September in 21 Russian regions, we analyze a report on the candidates running for governor. The report concludes that no real competition can be expected in these elections, with few exceptions.

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Approval ratings do not predict change or Why we should stop gazing at political polls from Russia

Prigozhin's failed mutiny on June 24th sparked various speculations concerning his support among the Russian population.

In times of political turbulence, approval ratings become subject to interpretations fueled by the hope of regime collapse. An expert explains why putting so much trust in politicians’ approval ratings originating from today’s Russia might be delusional.

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Playing heroes

All the proclamations about the active involvement of 'war veterans' in politics remain empty rhetoric.

In reality, the 'defenders of Donbass' hat is now worn by the same politicians who have held official positions for years. This verbiage and masquerade are designed not to please the voters but to satisfy one particular person.

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The thing

As it turned out at legal proceedings held on the 9th of March, proving the illegality and inadequacy of the online voting system used in Moscow's elections in 2022 wasn't rocket science or high mathematics. On the contrary, it was as easy as asking for a certificate!

Moscow's i-voting system is not lawfully certified and contradicts legal requirements, court investigations revealed.

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#Commentary

The martial electoral law

Again and again, the Duma adjusts electoral legislation to suit its current needs. This time the main innovation appears to be a "remote election" regime for the occupied territories. This squaring of the circle would allow martial law to stay and elections to be held concurrently.

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#Commentary

Transcending 'unlimited potential for fraud'

For years, Moscow has been a hard place to win for pro-governmental candidates. Even online voting was hardly enough to secure trouble-free victories because the citizens used the traditional method. For the mayoral campaign of 2023, a new device is invented. 40% of precinct polling stations will evaporate into the Cloud.

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How to sell Putin for the fifth time

The new marketing plan for selling Putin to the voter is being developed at the Kremlin in secretive "closed seminars". The new packaging for the quarter-century-old merchandise is being tested.
But the campaign's outcome will be decided on the battlefields, not, for the first time in this century, in the Kremlin's cabinets.

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#Commentary

On the death of the Wizard

It's hard to believe that Russian elections, nowadays a synonym of rigging, falsifications and coercion, were almost honest before this man entered the post of the chief electoral officer.
Last week, Churov, also known as the Wizard, passed away, but his malevolent curses will haunt Russian elections for years.

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First elections after mobilisation

Last year the Kremlin cheated people who came to pollings station. The regime said nothing about the upcoming draft. But merely within 10 days after the polling stations were closed, the recruiting centres were unexpectedly open.

It is not possible to repeat that trick again.

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#Commentary

The doomed Code

The Communist Party prepared their Electoral Code for consideration by the Duma. They urge to make the third Sunday in March the primary voting day, eliminate multi-day and distant electronic voting, abolish voting in streets, etc.
Arkady Lyubarev, an electoral expert, shares the secret: Why the Duma will not enact any Code, even an immaculate one.

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Monitoring of the Monitors

Ordinary non-public citizens of Russia become threat number two once they acquire knowledge related to the electoral field and touch the sphere where one of the fundamental myths of the regime is created: the myth of nationwide popular support.

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Slippery AstroTurf of the Kremlin war

A new study of Russian social media proved half of the sabre-rattling messages to be artificial duplicates orchestrated from the single centre. The research has also revealed prolific pro-governmental professional bloggers trying to dominate the Russian Internet community. And yet, they are 1.5 less popular than anti-war authors.

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#Commentary

E-voting: invisible for observers, invincible for lawyers

The distant electronic voting keeps pushing the limits of our imagination. After the actual process of voting, where the entire process took place outside the view of key participants, came the legal revelation of how the lawmakers preemptively absolved themselves and the Central Election Commission of any responsibility.

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Outstanding resilience to repression and loyalty to democracy

Over 10 years, EPDE has evolved into a professional network of 16 members from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Ukraine. EPDE is united in the common goal of improving democratic election processes across Europe and providing a platform for peer learning and professionalisation for its members and experts.

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Il Duce served a la Russe

The Russian people have not named Vladimir Putin Il Duce (‘The Leader’). He has been identified as such, just as earlier in history in Italy, by the elite. And as in Italy, the elimination of fascism can only be finalised by integrating the ex-fascist country into the Western world.

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Unprecedentedly explicit: election observers are human right defenders!

The United Nations Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights defenders and on the right to freedom and peaceful assembly and of associations issued a statement on 27 October 2022 explicitly recognising citizen and international election observers as human rights defenders.

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#Commentary

The Emperor's secondhand clothes

By going to war in Ukraine, the Putin regime tried to be what it pretended to be, but its facade crashed into reality. Any myth is effective as long as its creator does not allow it to clash with reality. Skilled myth-makers know this well and guard their creations, and they do not, of course, believe in their own myths. Putin observed these rules for a long time, but he gradually began to believe in the myths that he and his entourage created and then acted in accordance with them.

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Those who dared - II

We continue to acquaint our readers with those rare, brave individuals who challenged the Putin regime at home during elections in September 2022, when the regime began to receive the first sobering blows at the front in Ukraine.

What happened with the reckless candidates after the elections? How did they survive the ordeal? Who managed to stay, and who had to flee the country? You will learn it in the following, the final part of this coverage, which is currently being written exclusively for REM.

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Serfs of the State

Today we will discuss budgetary workers and their role in Putin's regime. Who are the "budgetniki"? Are they the backbone of Putin's regime? In what countries and under what conditions are elections susceptible to manipulation through budgetary workers?

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Those who dared

On 12 September 2022, President Zelensky announced the liberation of 6,000 km2 in a massive counter-offensive. For President Putin, the day was the beginning of a period of humiliating defeats, of the disgraceful retreat of his army and a chaotic attempt at mobilisation.

But up to this very day, there had been an election campaign in Russia. In the choking atmosphere of "special military operation", under censorship and repression for any word of dissent, there were amazing people who dared to challenge the System.

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EPDE statement on house searches of Russian election observers

EPDE strongly condemns this act of repression, intimidation, and unlawful interference into citizens' constitutional right to free elections

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It is impossible to establish the genuine will of the voters, says Golos

The election outcomes were achieved in unfree, unequal election campaigns, in an environment of restrictions on the right to be elected for a substantial number of citizens and on fundamental political rights. Under such conditions, it is impossible to establish the actual will of the voters.

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#E-Day

The third voting day in the express overview by the Russian nonpartisan election monitor Golos

By the end of voting, tension at the polling stations was growing. The number of reports claiming that commission members, police and unauthorised persons put psychological pressure on observers has also increased.

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#E-Day

The second voting day in the express overview by the Russian nonpartisan election monitor Golos

According to Golos Movement, the main trends for the second voting day were conflicts between members of commissions and civic observers, signs of possible falsifications, and bribery and coercion of voters.

Read more …

#E-Day

The first voting day in the express overview of the Russian nonpartisan election monitor Golos

Main election day trends: pressure on election observers and candidates, bloated turnout in Distance E-Voting, coerced voting, failure of the Electronic Voter Register, violation of the rights of election committee members, observers and mass media, fabrication of fakes and attempts to discredit citizen observers.

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The 2022 elections as the last refuge of the scoundrel

Without the successes in Ukraine or on the propagandistic internal front, these elections are the last opportunity for the Kremlin to assert the concept of business-as-usual, to ensure the grip on regional assemblies. It is vital in the anticipation of an economic slump, Moreover, the new municipal structure needs a strong hand. Finally, it is a testing ground for “distant voting”, impermeable for observers.

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Falsification

The ruling Russian Party of Dead Souls

This investigation is both a quantum leap in electoral observation and the most severe blow to the ruling party's reputation. As you’ll see, the findings even question who is the genuine ruling party in Russia. It was such a severe blow that Ms Pamfiliva, the chairwoman of the Russian Central Election Commission, personally reported the case to President Putin within a week of the publication.

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Putin’s Second Front: no peace for the wicked

The failure of the PR campaign uncanny resembles the collapse of the military campaign on the battlefields. A new media monitoring report on "special operation" describes the unexpected resistance of the Russian population to a heavy propagandistic barrage.

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No European politicians to whitewash Kremlin’s fraudulent elections or pseudo-referenda

EPDE calls on all national and regional Parliaments of the EU, the European Parliament, the PACE and the OSCE (OSCEPA) to undertake measures preventing their members from participating in illegitimate “election observation”, organized to whitewash illegal electoral processes.

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Wartime elections

The upcoming E-day in Russia: deprived of the freedom of speech and party lists, elections are still the only way to grasp the citizens' attitude towards authorities.

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Falsification

Elections "in accordance with the plan"

Final part of electral fraud revelations made by the former vice-mayor of a millionaire Russian city.

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Elections in a close order formation

Essential changes to Russia’s electoral legislation were introduced after its aggression against Ukraine. Indeed, one might discern some military flavour in these adjustments: discipline, unification, centralisation, monopolisation of chain of command, and elimination of tools of civil control. Dr Arkady Lyubarev, candidate of legal sciences, co-author of federal and Moscow electoral legislation, and editor in chief of the draft Electoral Code, gives his assessment of the further deterioration of the electoral system in Russia.

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Falsification

The nine aggrieved elects

This story is quite exceptional. We’ve never heard the testimony of electoral fraud from a witness of such high administrative rank and political status: the former vice-mayor of a millionaire city, a former head of administration of a district, a member of the regional Political Council of the United Russia Party, ruling political organisation in the country, the Secretary of the district Political Council of the party and finally, a former KGB and FSB officer. Quite an informant!

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One must prepare for negative consequences – OPORA

The invaders have not been consistent in governing the temporarily occupied territories. L/DPR militants ‘appoint’ nonames to nonexistent offices in some places. In others, there are talks of holding a pseudo-referendum, and PR campaigns are run elsewhere to an incorporation in the occupied Crimea. The ‘people’s republic’ format will not work this time. However, it is still worth preparing for a negative scenario.

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Woodcut of flagellants (Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493)

To Russian opposition after the disaster of 2022: Enlighten, not repent

A. Kynev: All these hand-wringing and pathetic calls to each end everybody to repent is the utter public suicide of the opposition and a priceless gift to the government. No one has ever come to power or won an election on the pretext of humbling themselves and repenting. Therefore, this approach is an absolute dead-end and insane endeavour, at least from the electoral point of view.

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Ballotboxes under a military camouflage net. Collage by REM

Elections during Russia’s ‘Special operation’

The Russian authorities keep emasculating the institution of elections and modelling it after the Belarusian version. Notably, these changes do not match too well with the allegedly increased popular support for the Russian authorities against the backdrop of the war. Instead, it demonstrates a lack of confidence that the autumn elections will go smoothly.

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Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos'. By Photobank Moscow-Live
#Commentary

From election observers to ‘foreign agents’: how voters' rights defenders of the ‘Golos’ Movement are persecuted

Since September 2021, twenty regional coordinators and experts of the 'Golos' Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights were added to the registry of foreign media outlets performing the functions of 'a foreign agent'. Here's an overview of how election observers are being targeted and persecuted.

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ECHR Courtroom. Image by Adrian Grycuk

The League of Voters appeals to the ECHR

The 'League of Voters' Foundation appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for an interim measure requiring the Russian authorities not to liquidate it pending the ECHR proceedings on its earlier complaint. Should the liquidation proceed, it would make all future legal activities of the Foundation impossible: the organization would be unable to rent office space, collect donations, will lose all of its property, and would be forced to cease its human rights and educational activities.

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Sobyanin's report at the Moscow City Duma. Photo by the Moscow Mayor's Office
#Commentary

Internet voting and shortage of candidates: how 2022 Moscow municipal elections will be held

On September 11, 2022, municipal elections will be held in 125 of Moscow's 146 districts. It is not yet known whether these elections will be a multi-day process, but it is already certain that online voting will be used again and that parties that are preparing for the elections are already facing candidate shortages. Yekaterina Grobman reviews the current situation and what we can expect in 2022.

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The Kremlin. Image by Pxhere

‘Fortress’ Plan

Stanislav Andreychuk on how the Kremlin is changing laws that regulate Russia’s polity and elections to maintain the status quo.

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Plenary chamber of the Council of Europe's Palace of Europe. Image by PPCOE
#Commentary

Questionable credentials of the Russian Delegation to PACE after flawed Duma elections 2021

Independent election experts have described the 2021 Duma elections as the dirtiest elections in Russia's history. The lack of public control, the deprivation of millions of Russian citizens of their passive suffrage, massive manipulation of results through e-voting, holding of elections on the annexed territory of Crimea, and the inclusion of voters from the occupied Eastern Ukraine put the legitimacy of the current State Duma and the new PACE delegation under question.

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Detained Anti-corruption Foundation and Newcaster.TV staff, 2017. Photo by Ruslan Leviev

2021 Results. Laws of the year

The passing year built on legislative trends of the previous one and even brought about many innovations in censorship, limitations of online activities, and infringements on privacy. Such provisions include multiple prohibitions related to the Great Patriotic War, the ‘law against Anti-Corruption Foundation’, and infamous QR codes.

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Policemen block a street in Moscow. Photo by Sergey Korneev

On the liquidation of International Memorial

On 28 December 2021 Russia's Supreme Court ruled to close International Memorial. The lawsuit, filed by the Prosecutor General's Office, referred to a missing 'foreign agent' designation on some of the materials produced by International Memorial. This is only a formal pretext, though, and the court hearings showed that these allegations were groundless.

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Rally for the right to vote in Moscow (2019-07-27). Photo by Ilya Varlamov

Things Will Not Be The Same: OVD-Info on the Liquidation of Memorial NGOs

OVD-Info's statement on the liquidation of its partner - the 'Memorial' Human Rights Center.

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Navalny's Election Headquarters. Image by Dmitry Rozhkov

Departed Russia of the Future

Hardly any of Navalny's key allies currently remain in Russia. The Insider interviewed former coordinators of Navalny's regional headquarters to find out why and how they left, what they do in exile, and under what conditions they are willing to return to Russia.

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Basmanny District Court. Image by Photobank Moscow Live

Russia is liquidating the League of Voters

On December 8, the Basmanny District Court of Moscow ruled to liquidate the 'League of Voters' Foundation. Its leaders believe that the ruling is politically motivated and is aimed to destroy the organization which is a partner in the 'Golos' Movement and supports the training of independent citizen election observers in Russia.

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State Duma. Image by Moscow Live/flickr

Created and (or) distributed: Discriminatory aspects of the application of legislation on ‘foreign agents’

OVD-Info reviews the newly expanded 'foreign agents' law to identify and analyze discriminatory aspects of the legislation and its application.

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2019 Moscow City Duma election. Image by Krassotkin

Undercover: How observers are trained at the Civic Chamber of Moscow

A member of the 'Golos' Movement for the Defense of Voters' Rights recounts their experience observing elections on behalf of the Moscow Civic Chamber. According to the activist, the institution appears to purposefully instruct observers in such a manner as to limit their ability to make a real difference at the polling stations.

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Russian coach at Helsinki Central Railway Station. Image by Antti Leppänen

The Party's gold. How United Russia misappropriates Russian Railways’ money under the guise of "donations"

Last year United Russia collected a record amount of donations from legal entities, 4.8 billion rubles. The Insider learned that the party received about half of this money from major Russian Railways contractors, some of which seemingly could not afford to make such "donations". Despite claiming to channel funds towards charity and fighting the Coronavirus, the party spent it on the maintenance of its apparatus and election campaigning.

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Russian flag with gloomy clouds. Image by Pxhere

‘Golos‘ Movement supports Memorial and calls for an emergency civic meeting

Russian authorities have moved to liquidate the International Historical Educational Charitable and Human Rights Society 'Memorial' and its affiliate, Russian Human Rights Centre 'Memorial'. The 'Golos' Movement calls for solidarity with Russia's longest-standing human rights organization.

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Moscow, the Kremlin and Red Square. Photo by Vyacheslav Argenberg

Elections, totalitarian style

The political bloc of the Moscow Mayor's office has begun campaign preparations for the 2022 municipal elections. Meduza breaks down the key points in the preliminary campaign plan here.

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Man working on a computer in the dark. Image by Comstock

Golos' statement on the online voting in Russian elections

Following the observation of the September 19, 2021 elections, the 'Golos' Movement stated that 'the current electronic voting system does not meet the high standards of public accountability of electoral procedures', which the Russian Constitution and legislation establish as mandatory. Despite this position, some promoters of online voting in Russia have been claiming otherwise.

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Ufa, Bashkortostan. Photo by Sasha India/flickr

Election Day-2021 in Bashkiria: 'Put in the target number I set'

Preliminarily evaluating the elections to the Ufa City Council and the State Duma in the Republic of Bashkortostan, the 'Golos' Movement regretfully cannot recognize the elections as truly fair, i.e., fully compliant with the Constitution, the laws of the Russian Federation, the laws of the Republic of Bashkortostan, and international election standards.

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Krasnodar 2021 election results, by S. Shpilkin

Statistical analysis of elections in Kuban

According to the analysis by Sergey Shpilkin, 889 thousand out of 1.7 million votes for United Russia in Kuban do not fall into the normal mathematical distribution. This can result from direct falsifications, pressurized voting of the employees of state-owned enterprises, public institutions, and local authorities, and the use of an administrative resource.

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CPRF rally in Moscow, 2011. Photo by Wikimedia

When they came for the Communist Party: Arrests, sieges, and pressure on supporters after the State Duma elections

The Communist Party received 19% of the votes in the last elections to the State Duma. After that, the party's supporters faced unprecedented pressure for the 'systemic opposition.' They were detained, fined, sentenced to administrative arrests, and blocked in the party premises. CPRF continues to challenge the election results and demand an investigation by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

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Russian State Duma raises retirement age. Image by Wikimedia

Hot potato: Nearly a fifth of Russia’s new State Duma deputies owe their jobs to secondhand mandates

On Tuesday, October 12, the new convocation of Russia's State Duma convened for its first session. Roughly a fifth of all lawmakers — 88 of 450 deputies — received their seats from higher-ranked candidates on party lists, winning the jobs because others didn't want them.

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Election observation headquarters. Photo by Golos

'Golos' Movement: It won't be easy, but we can do it

Statement of the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"' on inclusion of its members into the Foreign Agents Registry, October 5, 2021.

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Map of Violations, Screenshot Oct. 8, 2021

Map of violations: three record-setting days

In total, from the beginning of voting dated September 17, 'Map of Violations' by the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"' published 4592 reports. The Map is a project that collects information about possible electoral violations using the principle of crowdsourcing – observers, voters, members of commissions may report alleged violations witnessed during the electoral campaigning or voting using a submission form on the website or a telephone hotline.

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REV-2021. By Nackepelo

First Findings of the Moscow's Remote Electronic Voting Technical Audit

The "remote electronic voting" or online voting held in the Russian capital during the September 17-19, 2021 elections was scandalous, to say the least. In response, two groups have been formed by the Russian public to scrutinize the results.

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Regions by level of electoral fraud

Levels of electoral fraud in the Russian regions

In order to help assess the outcomes of 2021 State Duma elections, the 'Movement in the Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"' provides a reference analysis, dividing Russian regions into six groups based on the level of falsifications in the federal elections of 2016 and 2018 and in the all-Russian voting in 2020.

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#Commentary

Remote electronic voting: results cannot be verified

A scandal in the capital: lengthy vote tabulation, a radical overhaul of the whole election results, and shut down of the observers' node.

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"We don't trust Churov - we trust Gauss". Image by Golos

2021 State Duma elections: first statistical estimates

Sergey Shpilkin analyzes data from 96,840 polling stations that cover 107.9 million registered voters out of 109.2 million on the list. His analysis demonstrates that at the polling stations where the results appear genuine, the turnout is on average 38% and the United Russia's share of votes is between 31% and 33%.

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Voting. By Photobank Moscow-Live

Preliminary findings of observation of the September 19, 2021, State Duma elections

This is a preliminary statement on findings of observation on the main voting day, September 19, 2021, by the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos".' Golos ran long-term and short-term observation of all stages of the campaign. In the course of the elections, the united call center's hotline received 5,943 calls. The 'Map of Violations' received 4,973 reports of alleged violations by noon 20 September, Moscow time, including 3,787 on the voting days.

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Voting. Image by Photobank Moscow-Live. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Voting. Image by Photobank Moscow-Live

Voting Day II: A Brief Overview

This is a brief overview of election monitoring findings on the Second Voting Day, September 18, 2021 by citizen observers of the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"'.

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Duma elections. by George Shuklin, CC BY-SA 2.5

Voting Day 1: A Brief Overview

This is a brief overview of election monitoring findings on the First Voting Day by citizen observers of the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"'.

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Campaigning in Samara. 2011 elections. Image by Golos

The election campaign and administrative mobilization of voters in September 19, 2021 elections

The September 19, 2021 elections are marked by growing pressure on media and individual journalists, attempts at blocking information about "Smart Voting", and massive coercion of voters to vote and register for e-voting and mobile voting. In parallel, social media has been growing in importance for years as a space of more freedom and an alternative information channel. Here are the main findings of the report that focuses on the impact of these two antipodal trends.

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Victor Vasnetsov. Three bogatyrs (Medieval Russian Heroes). Photo by flickr user paukrus

'The three heroes': more than a third of social media mentions are related to United Russia, CPRF, and the New People party

This report covers the monitoring of social networks from the 10th to the 11th week of the election campaign (August 23 to September 5) to the Russian State Duma, scheduled for September 19, 2021.

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Russian passports. Image by MediaPhoto.Org, CC-BY-3.0

Residents of Russia-Occupied East Ukrainian Territories Encouraged to Vote in 2021 State Duma Elections

One aspect of the 2021 Russian parliamentary elections that differentiates them from previous federal elections is the potential participation in the voting process of dozens of thousands of people located on the Ukrainian territories outside of control of the Ukrainian authorities and not recognized as part of Russia by the Russian Federation itself.

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Map of Violations Update Sept 6-12. Image by REM

Arrests, bribery, threats

This is the seventh overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the 'Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos"' between September 6 and September 12. Since the beginning of the election campaign, 945 messages from 72 regions have been published on the Map.

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Map of Violations Update - Aug 30-Sept 1

Arrests, arson, and being fired for refusing to register for remote voting

This is the sixth overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between August 30 and September 5. In total, from August 30 to September 1, 125 messages have been received by the Map.

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Social media. Image by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay

Two universes: unlike on television, in social networks, United Russia and the Communist Party are almost head-to-head

This report covers the monitoring of social networks from the 5th to the 9th week (July 20 - August 22) of the election campaign to the Russian State Duma, scheduled for September 19, 2021.

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Vladimir Putin on XVII congress of United Russia in 2017. Image by Wikimedia Commons

Vladimir Putin plans to win Russia’s parliamentary election no matter how unpopular his party is

Despite its dismal approval rating, Russian President Vladimir Putin's ruling political party can – and likely will – win a constitutional majority in September's legislative elections.

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Map of Violations, Golos website. Screenshot - Sept. 1, 2021

‘Imaginary’ campaign boards and an assignment to vote in prisons

This is the fifth overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between August 23 and August 29. In total, 100 messages have been received by the Map during this period.

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2019 Rally for right to vote in Moscow. Image by Wikimedia Commons

Consequences of the ‘law against the Anti-Corruption Foundation’: opposition candidates are denied participation in elections

The Moscow City Court has designated the Anti-Corruption Foundation, Alexey Navalny's Headquarters and the Citizens’ Rights Protection Foundation as 'extremist' organizations. Inter alia, it implies the prohibition to participate in elections.

The authorities have proceeded to banning pro-opposition candidates from running to the State Duma and other legislative bodies on a pretext of involvement in Navalny's projects.

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State Duma elections in Sochi, Dec 4. 2011. Image by flickr/Andrew Amerikov

The outcomes of nomination and registration of candidates to the State Duma of the Russian Federation

The elections of the State Duma of Russia of the eighth convocation are marked by considerable tightening of rules for candidate nomination and registration. In fact, the rules are much worse than in 2016, when the current membership of the parliament was elected. Run on the background of harsh restrictions on freedom of expression and information and freedom of assembly and association, the elections are accompanied by a political crackdown against the most active pro-opposition citizens.

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Map of Violations, Golos website. Screenshot - Aug. 20, 2021

Pressure on voters and state control over social media accounts

This is the fourth overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement for the Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between August 16 and August 22. In total, 98 messages have been received by the Map in that period.

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Behind a camera. Photo by Bicanski on Pixnio

Uneven access and unbalanced coverage: media monitoring findings after eight weeks of the campaign

Equality of rights of candidates in media coverage of their election campaign is one of the most important conditions for holding free and democratic elections. For a significant part of Russians, television remains to be one of the main sources of information. During the election campaign, the influence of television in shaping the attitude of the majority of voters towards elections and candidates is often decisive. Here is a summary of monitoring findings for the five main federal television channels during the first eight weeks of the campaign.

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Map of Violations, Golos website. Screenshot - Aug. 20, 2021

PCR tests for voters and candidate flights at public expense

This is the third overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement for the Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between August 9 and August 15. Since the beginning of the election campaign, 452 messages from 62 regions have been published on the Map.

 

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Screenshot of Golos' statement cover image

Statement on the continuation of the work of the Movement 'Golos' after being included in the 'Foreign agents' registry

On August 18, the Ministry of Justice of Russia included the Movement 'Golos' as the first unregistered organisation into the registry of unregistered public associations performing the functions of a foreign agent. Here is the translation of their statement.

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Russian regional elections in 2018. Image by Wikimedia Commons

Political and Legal Peculiarities of September 2021 Regional and Local Elections

According to the CEC data as of 9 July 2021, 4,370 elections and referenda are scheduled for 19 September 2021, including elections to the State Duma, nine gubernatorial elections (new heads will be elected in three more regions), 39 elections to regional parliaments, and 11 elections of representative bodies of regional centres. Here's an overview of legal regulations and peculiarities of these races.

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A screenshot of a live broadcast of the voting process. Image by 'Golos' Movement.

Open appeal of the 'Golos' Movement to the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin

In 2021, the Russian Central Election Commission decided to scrap open video broadcasts from the polling stations – a feature of Russian elections since 2012. The Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' has appealed to the President to help overturn this decision.

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Map of Violations, Golos website. Screenshot - Aug. 12, 2021

The administrative resource is gaining momentum, and independent candidates continue to face registration denials

This is the second overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement for the Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between August 2 and August 8.

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The Rt. Hon. Sir Alan Duncan represented the UK at the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council in Hamburg, Germany, 8-9 December 2016.
OSCE Flags. Photo by Alex Hammond / FCO. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
#Commentary

Russian elections again without OSCE observation

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the Parliamentary Assembly will not deploy international election observation missions to the 2021 State Duma elections due to major limitations imposed on the institutions. Announcing the decision, ODIHR Director noted that the ability "to independently determine the number of observers necessary for us to observe effectively and credibly is essential to all international observation."

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Reporter's notebook. Photo by 2008 Roger H. Goun. CC BY 3.0
#Commentary

CEC restricts journalists' access to the electoral process

On 28 July 2021, the Central Election Commission adopted a new media accreditation procedure that restricts media access to observe and report on the electoral process. The new rules violate the freedom of media editorial policy and may significantly reduce the transparency of the election process.

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Map of Violations, Golos website. Screenshot - Aug. 5, 2021

‘Extremists’, ‘foreign agents’, and the abuse of administrative resource

This is the first overview of reports of possible violations of electoral legislation gathered via the 'Map of Violations' by the Movement for the Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos' between June 22 and August 1.

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Ballot stuffing, elections March 18, 2018, Lyubertsy. Image - Golos
#Commentary

No public video broadcast from the polling stations during the September elections

Less than two months before the elections, the Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) decided to scrap open video broadcasts from the polling stations, which have been the feature of Russian elections since 2012.

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Ballot box for voting on Constitutional Amendments 2020. Photo - Wikimedia Commons

19 times: How the election law was changed before the 2021 State Duma elections

Since the last State Duma elections in 2016, lawmakers have introduced 19 amendments to the election law. In the year leading up to the State Duma elections in September 2021 alone, seven significant legislative amendments have been introduced, six of them in less than four months before the start of the campaign.

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TV reporter, Bryansk. Photo - pxfuel

No tolerance for dissent: the state of Russian media ahead of 2021 elections

After almost a decade of crackdowns on big players, the landscape of critical journalism in Russia is dominated by local or smaller niche projects. But if the 2020-2021 trend of relentless attacks on media, journalists, and bloggers continues, many of these small projects are not likely to survive into the autumn. The regime makes it pretty clear that it no longer intends to tolerate any dissent.

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"1941- ssshhh!" - Image by James Vaughan / flickr

What are "foreign agents" and "undesirable organizations"?

The laws on "foreign agent" and "undesirable organizations" continue to hamper the work of affected organizations, stigmatize and damage their reputation, and isolate the civil society from international cooperation and support. What are these provisions and how are they being applied?

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Vladimir Putin Speech at State Duma plenary session 2020-03-10. Image - Wikimedia Commons

Five years of silence: More than 20 State Duma lawmakers haven't said a word in parliament since they were elected in 2016

The Russian State Duma's seventh convocation is coming to the end of its five-year term. And according to a new report from iStories and Znak.com, dozens of its deputies haven't said a word in a parliamentary session since they were elected in 2016. Others haven't put forward a single bill. Be that as it may, this hasn't stopped these lawmakers from collecting high salaries and planning to put their names on the ballot for the State Duma election coming up in September.

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Arrest by the police. Image - Wikimedia Commons

Deprival of passive suffrage – who cannot run in the 2021 Duma Elections and why

According to election observers, recent amendments further limiting citizens' passive suffrage constitute a "fifth wave" of depriving Russians of their right to stand for election since the collapse of the USSR. New restrictions have a particular impact on politically active citizens.

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Programming, computing and information concept. Image - Peshkova, Getty Images Pro

Online Voting Testing in the Russian Federation: Observers’ Assessment

In May, the Russian Federation has tested a new system of remote electronic voting. The Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights "Golos" observed the testing phase, took part in the voting, and shared their conclusions and recommendations in a respective report.

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"I have the right to choose!" Photo - EPDE.

Conditions for Citizen Election Observation in the Russian Federation Ahead of the 2021 Duma Elections

Opportunities for independent citizen election observation and civil society space in general have been shrinking steadily in Russia over the past decade. Recently, further restrictions have been adopted that limit the ability of citizens to independently monitor electoral processes.

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May 1st Demonstration of the Communist Party, 2012. Image by _TMY2892/flickr

How Authorities Stripped Russians Of Choice

Over the past 14 years, the authorities have blocked 120,000 candidates from participating in elections of various levels, depriving millions of Russian citizens of the right to choose their representatives.

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A demonstration in Moscow. Image - by Andrey, Pxhere.

Hundreds of Thousands of Extremists

Russia has finally outlawed Alexey Navalny's political and anti-corruption movement. Here's how the crackdown affects activists, journalists, and ordinary supporters.

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Plenary meeting of the State Duma. Image - Wikimedia Commons
#Commentary

The Law Prohibiting People Involved in Activities of Extremist Organizations from Participating in Elections Is Adopted

The President of Russia approved the law prohibiting those who are "involved" in the activities of an extremist organization from running in elections.

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Electoral headquarters of Alexey Navalny. Photo - Wikimedia Commons

Now Extremists. How Alexei Navalny's Supporters May Be Persecuted

On June 9, the Moscow City Court, based on the charges by the Moscow Prosecutor's Office, recognized the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), the Foundation for the Protection of Citizens' Rights, and the headquarters of Alexei Navalny as extremist organizations. Now, many citizens are under a threat of pressure and persecution.

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Meeting of Central Election Commission Chair Ella Pamfilova with OSCE / ODIHR Director Matteo Mecacci. Photo - CEC

Implementation of OSCE/ODIHR Recommendations to Russia Following 2003-2018 Federal Elections

Between 2003 and 2018, OSCE/ODIHR published 139 recommendations on how to improve the conduct of elections in Russia. In the run-up to the State Duma elections in 2021, Russia has fully implemented just over 10% of them. Some have been tackled more promptly than others.

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Man using computers. Photo by: Lisa Fotios from Pexels

Online Elections in Russia: Manipulating Votes in a New Digital Realm

Ahead of the State Duma election on September 19, 2021, Russia just tested its remote electronic voting system. While the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation (CEC) is preparing the report about the results of the test, election monitors say Russia's electronic voting system is a black box.

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Alexei Navalny. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

New Legislation Aims To Block Opposition Candidates

The Russian authorities are expected to orchestrate a result in the upcoming State Duma elections that will give United Russia a clear majority of seats. This does not mean, however, that the manipulation of the electoral process by the authorities is complete. In a limited number of competitive districts, true opposition candidates including candidates who are associated with Aleksei Navalny have a real chance of winning if they are allowed to run. In recent weeks, steps have been taken to block these 'undesirable' candidates from participating.

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Central Election Commission (CEC) of Russian Federation during April 21, 2021, meeting. Photo by: CEC.
#Commentary

The new-old Central Election Commission: an authentic renewal or a superficial touch up?

On March 19, 2021, the new composition of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of the Russian Federation was revealed. Out of 15 members, eight new people joined the CEC. In particular, the new Commission has been 'reinforced' by bureaucrats from the Presidential Administration, the State Duma, and the Civic Chamber (a consultative civil society institution closely linked to the government).

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