Statement on election monitoring results of Single Election Day on September 10, 2017
The “Golos” movement conducted long-term and short-term public monitoring of the Single Election Day in Russia on September 10, 2017. The monitoring resulted in analytical reports and the following statement on the conduct of the election day.
Election day
The low turnout observed in these elections was caused in the first place by the low level of competition and by the voters’ distrust towards the election process that had developed over the course of recent years.
Undoubtedly, the policy of intolerance to violations and fraud, which had been publically adopted by the new leadership of the Central Election Commission of Russia, as well as the Committee’s attitude towards observers as allies rather than enemies, had an overall positive effect on the election process. These efforts, along with legislative restrictions on the removal of observers, significantly reduced the number of violations of voters’ rights compared to previous years.
Nevertheless, observations of the September 10 elections suggest that illegal strategies and tactics are still prevalent in certain regions.
From a number of polling stations, we have received reports of documented election rigging: ballot box stuffing and exertion of pressure on voters by their employers or superiors; illegal campaigning; illegal transportation and bribery of voters; violations of the “home” voting procedure; violations of the rights of observers, members of commissions, and representatives of the media; and violations of counting procedures.
On Election Day and during the subsequent period of vote counting, the hotline of the movement “Golos” (8 800 333-33-50) received 1,200 phone calls (and a total of over 1,300 during the entire election campaign period). On Election Day, the “Map of Violations” service received 825 reports of possible violations (with over 1,500 messages received during the whole election campaign period).
The most common messages received on Election Day by the “Map of Violations” pertained to the following infractions:
- violation of the “home” voting procedure, illegal voting – 173 calls (21% of the total number of calls)
- violation of the rights of observers, commission members, and media representatives – 158 (19%)
- violation of the rules for summarizing election results, distortion of election results – 110 (13.3%) (It is important to stress that the percentage of reports on these violations has increased compared to previous years.)
- coercion of voters, violation of the secrecy of the vote – 102 (12.3%) (The share of reports on such violations compared to previous years has also increased.)
- illegal campaigning – 94 (11.4%)
- violation of polling station design – 58 (7%) (Compared to the previous years, there were significantly fewer complaints from observers regarding the design of polling stations.)
- non-inclusion in voter lists, failure to grant voting rights – 19 (2.35%).
Information on criminal violations – 32 messages in total, including ballot stuffing (with varying degrees of detail) – came from 10 regions. We should pay particular attention to the investigation of incidents in two regions, the Krasnodar Territory and the Saratov Region, where the largest number of ballot stuffing reports originated. Reports of various procedural irregularities, including instances of voting taking place outside designated voting premises, came from 33 regions.
Complaints about the (organized) transport of groups of voters to polling stations came from 10 regions. There is reason to doubt the voluntary participation of these voters.
Illegal campaigning on Election Day was observed in 26 regions, and reports on voter bribery came from 15 regions. We are particularly concerned about a large-scale “lottery” for voters in the Sverdlovsk region, which included prizes such as apartments, cars, and other valuable objects. There is evidence that the lottery coupons were handed out directly at the polling stations.
The number of violations related to the refusal of admission to observers at polling stations, and instances of their illegal removal from the premises, are down from previous years. At the same time, we should note that, whereas earlier such violations most often happened during the first half of Election Day, when the rights of observers were violated at the stage of their non-admission to polling stations, now such violations occur more frequently in the later stages of the voting process and during vote counting.
Vote counting violations were reported at polling stations in 21 regions, specifically: lack of publicity regarding the count, violation of the vote counting procedure, and restriction of the rights of observers. At the same time, in some areas of Moscow, the procedure of summarizing the results in the Territorial Electoral Commissions was artificially delayed.
Various examples of such violations were reported by “Golos” on Election Day: in three reports (at 12:00 a.m., 6:00 p.m., and 12:00 p.m ), in the election day chronicle, in press releases of the regional offices, and on the “Map of Violations.”
Preliminary recommendations
Observations by the “Golos” movement of the September 10 elections on Single Election Day – including long-term observation (during the entire election campaign) and short-term observation (on Election Day itself) – warrant us to issue the following preliminary recommendations.
To the federal legislator (the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, the Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, the President of the Russian Federation):
- Protect electoral legislation from manipulation in the interest of the ruling party and of individual subjects of the political process. In making changes to electoral legislation, first ensure the principle of equality of election participants as well as of the interests of the voters.
- Introduce amendments to electoral legislation that ensure real competition in elections at all levels; in particular, restore the possibility of registering candidates and party lists on the basis of electoral pledge, reform the voter signature registration system, and cancel or significantly reform the deputy signature registration system (the so-called “municipal filter”).
- Create necessary conditions for public observation at elections, and legislatively establish the institution of election observation by public associations.
- Reform the system of forming election commissions: exclude the participation of executive officials in election commissions. Increase to two thirds the proportion of members of election commissions nominated by political (and not only parliamentary) parties, and establish an order in which priority is given to parties more dependent on voter support. Carry out the reform of election commissions in the city of Moscow.
- Increase the fine for administrative offenses related to the violation of the rights of observers and members of election commissions. Simplify the procedure for appointing observers to polling stations.
- Oblige heads of regions and municipalities that are candidates for elections to go on vacation for the period of the election campaign.
- Completely exclude any possibility of using public events organized at the expense of budgetary funds and/or with the participation of officials performing their official duties for the purpose of election campaigning of individual candidates and parties.
- Introduce amendments to Russian electoral legislation that close the gap for financing election funds from companies that have foreign owners or belong to the state of the Russian Federation, constituent entities of the Federation, or municipalities.
- Improve the procedure for provision, financial reporting, and monitoring of political consulting services to candidates and parties in order to increase their transparency.
To election commissions:
- Ensure a completely independent, collegial, open, and transparent decision-making process, as required by current electoral legislation.
- Do not implement recommendations and informal instructions that do not comply with current electoral legislation.
- Ensure greater protection of commission members in the event of their prosecution for refusing to commit unlawful acts.
- Eliminate any element of arbitrariness and selectivity in the decision making process.
- Ensure the equality of all candidates and parties in the nomination, collection, and verification of signatures and registration, as well as in the conduct of election campaigning and other electoral activities.
- Create the most favorable conditions possible for equal access of candidates and parties to the media.
- Develop a set of measures to identify and suppress indirect campaigning, carried out under the guise of informing the public about the official activities of a candidate.
- Tighten control over campaigning activities not financed from official electoral funds, such as by using administrative resources and obtaining unequal access to the media.
- When publishing data on legal entities, disclose information about the ultimate owners of the companies, including those of closed joint-stock companies.
- When publishing information on the sources of election fund financing, indicate the TIN of the relevant legal entity.
- (To the CEC of Russia:) Ensure compliance of election commissions with the legal procedure for counting votes and summarizing election results.
To candidates and political parties:
- Stick to the principles and methods of fair competition in election campaigns.
- Do not resort to using the help of an “administrative resource.”
To the mass media:
- Ensure equal opportunity for all candidates and parties to access print space, airtime, and network resources.
- Ensure objectivity and equality of candidates and parties in election coverage.
- Abstain from publishing custom-made campaigning materials of a negative nature.
To judicial and law enforcement bodies:
- Take real measures to identify and punish patrons and organizers of crimes committed by members of election commissions and associated with the falsification of voting and election results.
- Investigate violations and crimes more thoroughly, based on evidence and equality of testimony.
- Prevent election offenses related to taking advantage of official positions.
- Tighten control over campaign activities not financed from election funds, such as by using administrative resources and obtaining disproportionate access to the media.
- Prevent various actions that impede the legitimate campaign activities of candidates and electoral associations.
- Do not follow politically motivated instructions.