“We don’t need chaos”: in assessing the cancellation of gubernatorial elections
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Direct gubernatorial elections in Russia have been postponed or transferred even due to Russian incursions into Ukraine, put together on Tuesday night by several media outlets. What do they think about the possible rejection of the election of governors.
According to three publications, the issue may be considered on Wednesday, April 27, at the Council of the Law with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The council includes the chairmen of the State Duma and the Federation Council, their deputies, the chairman of the committee following the meeting of the chamber of parliament, as well as the speakers of legislative assemblies of the regions.
To draw up a meeting, in accordance with the format that the elections should take place in September this year, and whether they should be held at all, and Putin can express his opinion on this matter, writes RBC.
It is highly likely that direct elections of governors can be elected, and the regions are subject to the transition to elections through legislative assemblies, said the interlocutors of the publication. “There is no final decision yet. We are waiting for Wednesday,” – informed Kommersant source. “Everyone is waiting for him. [Путина] public position and will focus on it,” – added Vedomosti source.
“The situation in the country is not standard”
At the same time, the word “Ukraine” appears only once in the Vedomosti article, while it does not appear in the Kommersant and RBC articles. Later, the possible cancellation or transfer of powers of elections in the regions was connected with Ukraine by a federal official in a conversation with Interfax.
“The topic of the abolition or transfer of powers in the elections of governors is really being actively discussed in the authorities,” the agency’s interlocutor said on condition of anonymity. “The situation in the country is non-standard due to special operations and harsh assessments.
An Interfax source in parliament clarified that “initially, it was about the abolition of exclusive elections in the eastern and southern regions, primarily in the border regions.” He said that he decided to consider the option of canceling elections for all regions, “put them in an equal position.”
If Putin chooses the option of postponing, rather than canceling, the election of governors, then they will either be in 2023 or in 2024, when presidential elections are scheduled in Russia, RBC’s interlocutors told RBC. Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
“What kind of campaign will this be? There will be chaos”
The BBC is assigned committees of the State Duma committees, which are part of the council of legislators with Putin’s participation, as they relate to the possible cancellation or postponement of elections.
“It’s an unusual question,” said Vladimir Gutenev (United Russia), head of the industry and trade committee. It’s okay.
The head of the committee on agrarian issues, Vladimir Kashin (KPRF), supports the idea of not holding direct elections of governors this year.
“Now, while the special operation is going on and our governors in the Kursk, Bryansk, Belgorod attack, Krasnodar region are immersed in all this, what kind of campaign will it be? There will be chaos. We don’t need chaos. September 2023,” the report said.
The head of the committee on labor and social policy, Yaroslav Nilov (LDPR), mentioned the appointment of a municipal filter that prohibits nomination against the authorities, and suggested, taking into account “situations in the world,” not to spend money on election campaigns. “We can return to the practice of appointing regional regions, which was before 2012, when the candidacies of heads of representatives were presented by deputies of legislative assemblies,” he said. Nilov believes that it is possible to cancel the gubernatorial elections both for five years (“until the expected situations”), and forever.
The gubernatorial elections in Russia were already canceled in 2004 after the tragedy in Beslan. They were returned by Dmitry Medvedev in 2012 before he left the presidency of the country.
“I would like the elections to be direct, because there are always competitors. Financial Market Committee Anatoly Aksakov (“Fair Russia”).
Direct gubernatorial elections on the expected voting day in September 2022 are scheduled in 14 regions – Vladimir, Tambov, Yaroslavl, Kaliningrad, Kirov, Novgorod, Ryazan, Tomsk, Saratov and Sverdlovsk territories, as well as in Karelia, Buryatia, Udmurtia and Mari El.
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