2007 Russian legislative election
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All 450 seats in the State Duma 226 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Turnout | 63.71% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
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Legislative elections were held in
Although 400 foreign
Electoral system
The 2007 election were assigned exclusively from
That year, the 225 single-member districts were abolished. In the election of 2003, 100 of these seats were won by independents or minor party candidates. All seats were awarded by proportional representation. The threshold for eligibility to win seats was raised from 5.0 to 7.0 percent. In 2003 four parties each exceeded 7.0 percent of the list vote and collectively won 70.7 percent of the total Duma vote.
Only officially registered parties were eligible to compete, and registered parties could not form a bloc in order to improve their chances of clearing the 7.0 percent threshold, with the provision that parties in the Duma had to represent at least 60% of the participating citizens,[2] and that there must be at least two parties in the Duma. There were eleven parties eligible to take part in the Duma election. Duma seats were allocated to individuals on the lists of successful parties in accordance with their ranking there, and divided among each regional group of candidates for the party in proportion to the votes received by that party in each region [3] (Article 83: Methodology of Proportional Distribution of Deputy Seats). Any members who resign from their party automatically forfeit their seats.
Several weeks ahead of the election, party leaders take part in moderated debates. Debates are televised on several state channels. Each candidate were given a chance to present his party's agenda, and to challenge opponents with questions. (United Russia refused to participate in the debates to receive more time for allowed promotion clips than other parties.)
In the Republic of Chechnya, a constitutional referendum was held on the same date.
Contesting parties
15 parties were eligible to participate in the elections.[4] On 13 September 2007, Patriots of Russia and Party of Russia's Rebirth created a coalition,[5] leaving only 14 parties to participate. All 14 parties have presented their lists of candidates to the Central Election commission.[6] However, the Electoral Commission decided the Russian Ecological Party "The Greens" would not be able to stand, due to an alleged large number of faked signatures (17%, more than the allowed 5%) in their supporters' lists.[7] Nationalist People's Union decided to endorse the Communist Party.[8]
Included in final ballots were:
- Agrarian Party of Russia
- Citizens' Force
- Democratic Party of Russia
- Communist Party of the Russian Federation
- Union of Rightist Forces
- Russian Social Justice Party
- Liberal Democratic Party of Russia
- Fair Russia
- Patriots of Russia–Party of Russia's Rebirth Coalition
- United Russia
- Yabloko
A number of parties contested the election. The biggest and most popular party in
), which has also been favourable towards President Putin's policies.The largest
Conduct
The
Observers of the
Campaign
The campaign season was permitted by law to begin on 3 November and end on 30 November. All the parties were provided with some free television and print access, and on-air candidate debates at times appeared informative.
United Russia
On 1 October 2007 President Putin announced at the convention of the United Russia
party that he would "accept" its invitation to head its list of candidates, although he
declined to join the party. In his acceptance speech, Putin stated that a suggestion by a previous speaker that he become the prime minister after his second term as president ends "is entirely realistic, but it is too soon to talk about this at the moment because at least two conditions would first need to be met. United Russia declined to participate in any broadcast political debates, but on 1 October approved the program that pledged to continue Putin's policy course." The election programme was entitled "Putin's Plan: a worthy future for a great country".
Results
As of 02:00, 3 December
The results mostly repeated those of the
A Just Russia 5,383,639 | 7.83 | 38 | +1 | | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Agrarian Party | 1,600,234 | 2.33 | 0 | –2 | |||||
Yabloko | 1,108,985 | 1.61 | 0 | –4 | |||||
Civilian Power | 733,604 | 1.07 | 0 | 0 | |||||
Union of Right Forces | 669,444 | 0.97 | 0 | –3 | |||||
Patriots of Russia | 615,417 | 0.89 | 0 | 0 | |||||
Party of Social Justice | 154,083 | 0.22 | 0 | 0 | |||||
Democratic Party | 89,780 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 | |||||
Total | 68,777,136 | 100.00 | 450 | 0 | |||||
Valid votes | 68,777,136 | 98.91 | |||||||
Invalid/blank votes | 759,929 | 1.09 | |||||||
Total votes | 69,537,065 | 100.00 | |||||||
Registered voters/turnout | 109,145,517 | 63.71 | |||||||
Source: CEC |
Regional results
Although the United Russia became the leading party in each region, in different regions of the Russian Federation, election results vary considerably. While in metropolitan areas of Moscow and Saint Petersburg with 50-55% turnout United Russia got only about 50% of the votes, the national republics, especially in North Caucasus, provided much stronger voter turnout and support for the ruling party.
According to the official results, the highest turnout was in Chechnya at 99.5%, of which 99.36% votes were cast for United Russia; the Chechen pro-Moscow leader Ramzan Kadyrov had publicly promised beforehand to deliver 100 percent of his republic's vote for Putin.[19] In the neighbouring Republic of Ingushetia, where the official results also said around 99 percent of the republic's population had voted and nearly all of them for the pro-Putin party, the elections were preceded by mass protests against the government, and observers suggested that in fact only 8% of people turned out to vote there.[20]
Criticism
Domestic criticism
Opposition parties and some independent observers reported widespread abuses, such as strong
Alexander Kynev, a political analyst with the monitoring organisation
The Russia's Communist Party said its 300,000 observers identified about 10,000 violations, among them the alleged mass falsification of Duma vote in the Caucasus republic of Dagestan.[28] Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov called a news conference to criticize the official results.[29] Journalist Grigory Belonuchkin, delegated as an observer by the CPRF in Moscow Oblast, claims that the chairpersons of several polling stations attempted to forge the results while transmitting them to the above committee, rigging vote count in favor of the United Russia.[30][31]
Yabloko party leader Grigory Yavlinsky said "The results of this election were not counted, were not analyzed, were not gathered. They were ordered." He also issued a warning to Yabloko supporters: "Be very careful. We are entering a time when, if something happens, there will be nowhere to turn. A one-party system is built in such a way that there is no court, no law, no defense of any kind."[27]
The Communist Party, Yabloko, and the Union of Rightist Forces are considering filing a joint complaint with the
Pro-Kremlin Vladimir Zhirinovsky complained of vote-rigging in several regions where his ultranationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia did worse than in the rest of the country, but blaming only local authorities. "Just as road accidents cannot be avoided in any country in the world, there are officials who manipulate (elections), who falsify, even though no one has asked them to do it," Zhirinovsky said.[32]
Former world chess champion
The deputy head of
In mid-December journalist of
To protest the official results of the election (according to which 98.4% of registered voters participated in the election, and 99.2% of them voted for the United Russia), voters in the republic of Ingushetia collected written and signed claims from adult people who did not vote, 87,340 as of 10 January 2008.[37] This is 54.5% of the republic's total electorate.
Court challenges to the election results
On 19 March 2008 the court of town
Foreign criticism
Governments
- Czech Republic
- The Czech Republic said the "election campaign did not conform to democratic standards."[11]
- France
- France called on Russia to investigate the alleged violations in the poll.President Nicolas Sarkozy telephoned Putin to congratulate him on his victory, which drew protests from rights groups.[39]
- Germany
- German government said that "Russia was not a democracy and Russia is not a democracy"Foreign Minister of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier both criticised the Russian elections.[42] Ruprecht Polenz, who heads the German parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, said that the Russian vote was "not what we would call a democratic election" and noted that "we don't know what kind of Russia we'll be dealing with the day after tomorrow."[43] The German government spokesman said: "Measured by our standards, these were not free and fair elections, they were not democratic elections."[26]
- Italy
- President of the Council of Ministers of Italy Romano Prodi quickly denied the Kremlin's claims that he had called Putin to congratulate him on his party's success.[39]
- Portugal
- The Government of Portugal said the vote "did not meet international standards and commitments."[39]
- United Kingdom
- The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that voting irregularities, "if proven correct, would suggest that the Russian elections were neither free nor fair".[25]
- United States
- National Security Council and White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said: "Early reports from Russia include allegations of election day violations. We urge Russian authorities to investigate these claims."[44] President George W. Bush said that he and his administration "were sincere in our expressions of concern about the elections" in the telephone talks with Putin.[45]
International institutions
According to a joint statement by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe, elections on 2 December "were not fair and failed to meet many OSCE and Council of Europe commitments and standards for democratic elections".[46] According to the statement,
In general, the elections were well organised and observers noticed significant technical improvements. However, they took place in an atmosphere which seriously limited political competition and with frequent abuse of administrative resources, media coverage strongly in favour of the ruling party, and an election code whose cumulative effect hindered political pluralism. There was not a level political playing field in Russia in 2007.[47]
As chief of the
Swedish parliamentarian
Finnish parliamentarian
Central Election Commission Chairman Vladimir Churov dismissed the criticisms of the Western election monitors as "politically motivated and subjective".[27]
The European Union also voiced its concerns, with
there were many reports and allegations of media restrictions as well as harassment of opposition parties and non-governmental organizations in the run-up to the elections and on election day, and that procedures during the electoral campaign did not meet international standards and commitments voluntarily assumed by Moscow. The EU hopes that investigations will clarify the accuracy of these allegations.[51]
Western media criticism and commentary
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (
According to British newspaper The Independent, "critics condemned the election as an exercise in phantom democracy. Although voters had a choice of 11 parties, the only ones with a chance of making it into Russia's notoriously feckless Duma are either creations of the Kremlin, or loyal to it" and "Many Russians believe that the loss of freedom has been an acceptable price to pay for the stability."[53]
However, according to Nikolai N. Petro's opinion article in the International Herald Tribune, "Far from indicating a retreat from democracy, the Russian electorate's rejection of the current opposition may be a sign of the country's progress toward a mature democracy."[54]
Norman Stone in The Times guest comment article though admitting that "No doubt there are elements of truth in [the allegations]", wrote "President Putin is popular, and from a Russian perspective, you can easily see why. Indeed, the outcome of his recent election more than slightly resembles General de Gaulle's success in 1958". He concluded on Putin: "if Russians see him as the best hope, they should be understood."[55]
On the other hand, Denmark's daily Politiken, noted that the Russian election "could be best described as a swindle." The paper argued that Western countries should not accept its results "lest they compromise their own democratic values and deprive Russians of hope in a democratic future for their country".[28]
Britain's Financial Times observed that "Russia's relations with the West threatened to hit a new low...as Western leaders and institutions denounced parliamentary elections at the weekend as unfair and undemocratic. But independent observers suggested both sides could seek to contain the damage as Russia heads into a crucial and uncertain period."[24]
In
According to Zbigniew Brzezinski "the overt and increasingly arbitrary political manipulation of Russia's political process culminated in the elections to Duma in late 2007 that were not much more than a state controlled public plebiscite. The ultimate irony is that, at the time, Putin could in all probability prevailed even in a truly contested electoral process".[57]
Further reading
- McAllister, Ian; White, Stephen (2008). "'It's the Economy, Comrade!' Parties and Voters in the 2007 Russian Duma Election" (PDF). Europe-Asia Studies. 60 (6): 931–957. S2CID 154846007. Also published in: Richard Sakwa, ed. (2013). Power and Policy in Putin's Russia. Routledge. pp. 53–79.
References
- ^ "Country Profile: Russia". IFES Election Guide. 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- Aleksandr Veshnyakov (2006). "Towards the democratic formation of authorities" (in Russian). Public Service. Archived from the originalon 22 June 2006. Retrieved 4 November 2006.
- ^ "Страница не найдена 404".
- ^ "List of parties meeting the requirements of clause 2, article 36 of the Federal Law "On Political Parties", as of 5 September 2007" (in Russian). Federal registration service. 7 September 2007. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
- ^ ""Patriots of Russia" create electoral coalition "Motherland - Patriots of Russia"" (in Russian). REGNUM. 13 September 2007. Retrieved 22 October 2007.
- ^ "CIK attests party lists" (in Russian). BBC Russia. 17 October 2007. Retrieved 22 October 2007.
- ^ "Russian Greens are not permitted to the elections". NZZ Online (in German). 27 October 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ На региональных и местных выборах Archived 9 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Meyer, Henry (1 October 2007). "Putin Says He May Become Premier After Term Ends". Bloomberg L.P. online. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ a b c "Monitors denounce Russia election". BBC News. 3 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f "Opposition, monitors denounce 'rigged' Russian election". ABC News Australia. 3 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ "Russians vote in general election". BBC News. 2 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ "SCO Observer Mission issues statement on parliamentary polls in Russia". Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 6 December 2007.
- ^ State Duma elections 2011 and the marginal role of Russian parties. Part 2
- ^ United Russia has termed the corpus of President Putin's annual speeches to the Federal Assembly the "Putin Plan" for Russia's development.
- ^ "About the ongoing results of the vote at 02:00 Moscow time". Central Election Commission, Russian Federation (in Russian). 3 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ "Election of Deputies of the State Duma (2 December 2007), Polls at the exit of polling stations (exit-poll) - Final results". Public Opinion Fund (in Russian). 2 December 2007. Archived from the original on 4 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ Oxford Analytica (17 October 2007). "Parliamentary Democracy in Russia?". Forbes. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ a b "Big Putin vote in Chechnya has locals puzzled". Reuters. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 5 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ The Economist (3 December 2007). "Russia's election. How it was rigged". The Economist. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- Gazeta.ru12 March 2007
- Guardian Unlimited. London. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
- ^ a b Lowe, Christian (1 December 2007). "Russians say being forced to vote in election". Reuters. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
- ^ a b "Russia elections 'unfair and undemocratic'". MSN. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ Guardian Unlimited. London. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
- ^ a b c d "Kremlin insists election was fair". BBC News. 3 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ a b c d RFE/RL Newsline Archived 24 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine, FRE/RL, 5 December 2007
- ^ a b c d "Communists allege mass Falsification of Duma Vote in Daghestan". RFE/RL Newsline. 4 December 2007. Archived from the original on 24 June 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ a b "Russian election results challenged". United Press International. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 26 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ Белонучкин, Григорий. Между молотом и наковальней: Ночь в кругу действующих лиц Archived 12 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine // Советская Россия № 165 (13063), 8 December 2007.
- ^ Белонучкин, Григорий. Чудеса с голосами
- ^ Litvinenko poisoning suspect, elected to Russian parliament, expresses contempt for West Archived 6 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Associated Press, 5 December 2007
- ^ "NaZlobu.Ru / " "". Archived from the original on 11 December 2008.
- ^ "Радиостанция ЭХО МОСКВЫ :: Особое мнение :: Вторник, 18 Декабрь 2007". Archived from the original on 21 December 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
- ^ Russia expels journalist critical of Kremlin, Reuters, Sun 16, 12 Dec:32 PM ET
- ^ Journalists condemn Russian expulsiion, The Financial Times, 16 December 2007
- ^ "EVER MORE INGUSH FORMALLY DENY VOTING IN STATE DUMA ELECTION". Archived from the original on 15 January 2008. Retrieved 11 January 2008.
- ^ a b Жители Долгопрудного не согласны с итогами думских выборов by Yury Chernega Kommersant N45 (3862) 20 March 2008 (in Russian)
- ^ a b c Prodi denies congratulating Putin over Russian poll Archived 25 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine, EUbusiness, 4 December 2007
- ^ Russian election unfair and biased towards Putin, observers say, The Guardian, 4 December 2007
- ^ "Angela Merkel criticises Russian elections". Daily Times (Pakistan). 3 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ a b c d "OSCE Slams 'Unfair' Russian Election". Spiegel online. 3 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ U.S. CALLS ON RUSSIA TO INVESTIGATE ELECTION FRAUD CHARGES Archived 16 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine, RFE/RL, 3 December 2007
- ^ Blomfield, Adrian; Holt, Richard (3 December 2007). "US urges inquiry into Putin election landslide". The Telegraph.
- ^ Bush tells Putin of poll concern, BBC News, 4 December 2007
- ^ "Russia's election not fair, says OSCE". The West Australian. Reuters. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ Bergman, Klas (3 December 2007). "Russian Duma elections 'not held on a level playing field', say parliamentary observers". Council of Europe. Archived from the original on 9 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ "Putin's expected landslide marred by suspected electoral fraud". Asianews.it. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ "Chechnya claims highest turnout for Duma elections". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 4 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ Kimmo Kiljunen's interview to Ekho Moskvy, 3 December 2007
- ^ EU IN 'DISARRAY' OVER RUSSIAN VOTE Archived 24 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine, FRE/RL, 5 December 2007
- Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ The Independent (3 December 2007). "Putin voting 'scam'". The Independent. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ Petro, Nikolai (4 December 2007). "Why Russian liberals lose". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ No wonder they like Putin, by Norman Stone, The Times, 4 December 2007
- ^ "NATO chief concerned over Russia vote". Mercury news. 4 December 2007. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2007.
- ^ Zbigniew Brzezinski Putin's Choice Archived 11 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine The Washington Quarterly 31:2 pp. 95–116 2008
External links
- Electoral maps
- (in Russian) Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation
- (in Russian) Official results
- (in Russian) Video records of television debates between Russian parties