Russian presidential election, 2008
Encyclopedia
The Russian Presidential election of 2008, held on March 2, 2008 resulted in the election of Dmitry Medvedev
as the third President of Russia. Medvedev, whose candidacy was supported by incumbent president Vladimir Putin
and five political parties (United Russia
, Fair Russia
, Agrarian Party, Civilian Power
, Russian Ecological Party "The Greens"), received 71% of the vote, and defeated candidates from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia and the Democratic Party of Russia
.
The fairness of the election was disputed, with official monitoring groups giving conflicting reports. Some reported that the election was free and fair, while others reported that not all candidates had equal media coverage and that Kremlin
opposition was treated unfairly. Monitoring groups found a number of other irregularities. The head of the electoral commission Vladimir Churov
and the European election monitoring group PACE
said the results reflected the will of the people.
The OSCE election monitoring group refused to monitor the election because of what it called "severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government", a charge Russia vehemently rejected, calling the decision "unacceptable".
, Fair Russia
, Agrarian Party of Russia and Civilian Power
. United Russia
held its party congress
on December 17, 2007 where by secret ballot
of the delegate
s, Medvedev was officially endorsed as their candidate in the 2008 presidential election. He formally registered his candidacy with the Central Election Commission on December 20, 2007 and said he would step down as chairman of Gazprom, since under the current laws, the president is not permitted to hold another post. Sources close to Gazprom and Medvedev have told the Vedomosti
newspaper that Medvedev may be replaced by Putin at Gazprom. His registration was formally accepted as valid by the Russian Central Election Commission on January 21, 2008.
In January 2008, Medvedev launched his presidential campaign with stops in the regions
.
In his first speech since he was endorsed, Medvedev announced that, as President, he would appoint Vladimir Putin to the post of prime minister
to head the Russian government
. Although constitutionally barred from a third consecutive presidential term, such a role would allow Putin to continue as an influential figure in Russian politics Putin pledged that he would accept the position of prime minister should Medvedev be elected president. Election posters portrayed the pair side-by-side with the slogan "Together we will win" (""). The poster depicts both politicians as the same height, yet Medvedev is 10 cm shorter than Putin.
Boris Nemtsov
, former Vice Prime Minister in Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet
, was nominated by the Union of Right Forces
on December 18, 2007 and became a registered candidate on December 22. He withdrew his bid on December 26, 2007 and called on his supporters to vote for Kasyanov instead.
, the candidate endorsed by Vladimir Putin as his preferred successor. The second most popular candidate was Gennady Zuganov, Leader of the Communist Party of Russia, who was expected to receive between 6% and 15% of the vote.
An opinion poll by the Yury Levada Analytical Center
, taken in September after Vladimir Putin
announced he would head the electoral list of United Russia
in the 2007 Parliamentary elections, showed a commanding lead for Sergei Ivanov
and Dmitry Medvedev
, with 34% and 30% of the vote respectively. Viktor Zubkov and Sergei Glazyev received only 4% of the vote each.
on February 20, Nikolai Gotsa, a representative of Bogdanov, accused Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his party of lying to and betraying their supporters. He accused them of voting in favor of government initiatives they criticize when in public. Zhirinovsky replied fiercely, insulting Gotsa and calling him a "sick man, a schizoid
", "bastard", and punched him when they went off the cameras. Bogdanov and Gotsa launched a legal issue against Zhirinovsky. On February 28, in another debate, Bogdanov claimed he had a personal talk with Zhirinovsky, and that the latter had threatened his life and demanded to withdraw the issue.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, in its capacity as an international election standards watchdog, refused to monitor the election because of what it called severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government. After weeks of negotiations, Russia agreed to increase the observer numbers for the ODIHR mission and extend the time frame for its visit, but the ODIHR claimed that the offer still didn't meet their requirements, insisting that it needed to send at least 50 of its observers to Russia on February 15, five days before the date proposed by Moscow, in order effectively monitor the election campaign.
Russia responded by insisting that it was complying fully with its international obligations and that its invitation for 400 monitors meets international standards. It accused the OSCE of attempting to politicize the dispute and that it suspected ODIHR's intention from the outset was to boycott the election, saying that the ODIHR had displayed "contempt for basic ethical norms ... which, it seems, indicates that ODIHR from the start was not even trying to agree on mutually acceptable conditions for monitoring."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
stated that
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mikhail Kamynin, said "The ODIHR flatly rejected a compromise without providing any clear explanations for its position. We believe such actions are unacceptable." Kamynin added that Moscow "deeply regretted" the OSCE refusal, accusing the organization, which he said generally sends 10-20 experts to observe election campaigns one or two weeks ahead of polls, of political bias against Russia.
An incident arose during the election when three out of nine members of the Biysk
Electoral Commission refused to sign the protocols citing widespread falsifications in their Priobsky Division. The rest of commission decided to approve the protocols as the alleged abuse was not reported during the election.
monitoring group stated that "the Election Day was held in a relatively quiet atmosphere in contrast to the State Duma election day
. Such large-scale violations observed then as campaigning next to polling stations, transporting of voters, intimidation of voters and others were practically non-existent." They did however report irregularities in the election.
The Commonwealth of Independent States
observer mission said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards. "The CIS observer mission states that the election is a major factor in the further democratization of public life in the Russian Federation, and recognizes it as free, open and transparent," said Nauryz Aidarov, head of the CIS mission.
Observers from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization
said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards.
An observing group from Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
stated that the result of the election was a "reflection of the will of an electorate whose democratic potential was, unfortunately, not tapped". They said "In the elections, which had more the character of a plebiscite on the last eight years in this country, the people of Russia voted for the stability and continuity associated with the incumbent President and the candidate promoted by him. The President-elect will have a solid mandate given to him by the majority of Russians."
The head of Russia's electoral commission Vladimir Churov
said that media coverage for the presidential election had been "fair but not equal".
The Economist
reported that Medvedev has been mentioned over six times more often than his three rivals in 1,000 different news sources, according to figures from SCAN, a media database owned by Interfax, but stated that this could be due to Medvedev's high profile job as chairman of the state-owned gas monopoly, Gazprom
.
A report by the International Herald Tribune
described Medvedev's election as "the culmination of Putin's efforts to consolidate control over the government, business and the news media since taking office eight years ago."
Russian Novaya Gazeta
claimed that there were forged election protocols and cases when independent observers were not allowed to monitor the election process. Journalist Victor Shenderovich
claims that only 3.5% of voters came to the elections in certain North Caucasus regions according to independent observers, whereas the Central Election committee reporter more than 90% turnaround.
, many in the Western media portrayed Russia's presidential election as nothing but a farce. It reported that the claims of rigging the election were not supported by the various international election monitoring organizations in attendance.
Political analyst and United Russia
member, Sergei Markov
, said that the outcome of this poll was predetermined because of how much support the Russian people show for Vladimir Putin's policies. "The Russian people have seen how successful these policies have been, and they want them to continue", he says. Markov cited fears that the West would interfere and change the course of the election, like they did in Ukraine
and Georgia
.
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
as the third President of Russia. Medvedev, whose candidacy was supported by incumbent president Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
and five political parties (United Russia
United Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
, Fair Russia
Fair Russia
A Just Russia, , also translated as Fair Russia, is a social democratic political party in Russia currently holding 38 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. It was formed on October 28, 2006, as a merger of Rodina, the Russian Party of Life and the Russian Pensioners' Party. Later, 6 further minor...
, Agrarian Party, Civilian Power
Civilian Power
Civilian Power was a liberal political party in the Russian Federation, which prior to February 2007 was called Free Russia.According to data from Rosregistration, the party has 55,063 members...
, Russian Ecological Party "The Greens"), received 71% of the vote, and defeated candidates from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia and the Democratic Party of Russia
Democratic Party of Russia
The Democratic Party of Russia or DPR is a former Russian political party that existed between 1990 and 2008. It was founded by Nikolai Travkin. It initially featured Stanislav Govorukhin and Sergey Glazyev, was a prominent democratically-oriented party, member of the Democratic Russia coalition,...
.
The fairness of the election was disputed, with official monitoring groups giving conflicting reports. Some reported that the election was free and fair, while others reported that not all candidates had equal media coverage and that Kremlin
Kremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...
opposition was treated unfairly. Monitoring groups found a number of other irregularities. The head of the electoral commission Vladimir Churov
Vladimir Churov
Vladimir Yevgenyevich Churov is a Russian official and politician. Since March 26, 2007, he has been a member and the Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Russia....
and the European election monitoring group PACE
PACE
-Associations:* Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy Workers International Union* National PACE Association* Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence-Educational programs:...
said the results reflected the will of the people.
The OSCE election monitoring group refused to monitor the election because of what it called "severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government", a charge Russia vehemently rejected, calling the decision "unacceptable".
Election campaign
Following his appointment as First Deputy Prime Minister, many political observers expected Medvedev to be nominated as Putin's successor for the 2008 presidential elections. There were other potential candidates, such as Sergey Ivanov and Viktor Zubkov, but on December 10, 2007, President Putin announced that Medvedev was his preferred successor. Four parties supporting Putin also declared Medvedev to be their candidate to the post - United RussiaUnited Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
, Fair Russia
Fair Russia
A Just Russia, , also translated as Fair Russia, is a social democratic political party in Russia currently holding 38 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. It was formed on October 28, 2006, as a merger of Rodina, the Russian Party of Life and the Russian Pensioners' Party. Later, 6 further minor...
, Agrarian Party of Russia and Civilian Power
Civilian Power
Civilian Power was a liberal political party in the Russian Federation, which prior to February 2007 was called Free Russia.According to data from Rosregistration, the party has 55,063 members...
. United Russia
United Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
held its party congress
Party Congress
A party congress is a general conference of a political party. The congress is attended by delegates who represent the party membership. In most parties the party congress is the highest decision making body of the organisation and elects the party's leadership bodies such as the National Executive...
on December 17, 2007 where by secret ballot
Secret ballot
The secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of...
of the delegate
Delegate
A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization at a meeting or conference between organizations of the same level A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization (e.g., a government, a charity, an NGO, or a trade union) at a meeting or conference...
s, Medvedev was officially endorsed as their candidate in the 2008 presidential election. He formally registered his candidacy with the Central Election Commission on December 20, 2007 and said he would step down as chairman of Gazprom, since under the current laws, the president is not permitted to hold another post. Sources close to Gazprom and Medvedev have told the Vedomosti
Vedomosti
Vedomosti is a Russian language business daily. It is a joint venture between Dow Jones, the Financial Times and Sanoma, publishers of The Moscow Times....
newspaper that Medvedev may be replaced by Putin at Gazprom. His registration was formally accepted as valid by the Russian Central Election Commission on January 21, 2008.
In January 2008, Medvedev launched his presidential campaign with stops in the regions
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
.
In his first speech since he was endorsed, Medvedev announced that, as President, he would appoint Vladimir Putin to the post of prime minister
Prime Minister of Russia
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation The use of the term "Prime Minister" is strictly informal and is not allowed for by the Russian Constitution and other laws....
to head the Russian government
Government of Russia
The Government of the Russian Federation exercises executive power in the Russian Federation. The members of the government are the prime minister , the deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers...
. Although constitutionally barred from a third consecutive presidential term, such a role would allow Putin to continue as an influential figure in Russian politics Putin pledged that he would accept the position of prime minister should Medvedev be elected president. Election posters portrayed the pair side-by-side with the slogan "Together we will win" (""). The poster depicts both politicians as the same height, yet Medvedev is 10 cm shorter than Putin.
Registered candidates
Four candidates registered their nomination with the Central Electoral Commission:- Andrey BogdanovAndrei Vladimirovich BogdanovAndrey Vladimirovich Bogdanov is a Russian politician. He is the leader of the Democratic Party of Russia and a Freemason, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Russia...
, leader of the Democratic Party of RussiaDemocratic Party of RussiaThe Democratic Party of Russia or DPR is a former Russian political party that existed between 1990 and 2008. It was founded by Nikolai Travkin. It initially featured Stanislav Govorukhin and Sergey Glazyev, was a prominent democratically-oriented party, member of the Democratic Russia coalition,...
. Registered candidate on January 24. - Dmitry MedvedevDmitry MedvedevDmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
- Deputy Prime Minister since 2005. He was supported by incumbent president Vladimir PutinVladimir PutinVladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
and the parties United RussiaUnited RussiaUnited Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
, Fair RussiaFair RussiaA Just Russia, , also translated as Fair Russia, is a social democratic political party in Russia currently holding 38 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. It was formed on October 28, 2006, as a merger of Rodina, the Russian Party of Life and the Russian Pensioners' Party. Later, 6 further minor...
, Agrarian Party, Russian Ecological Party "The Greens" and Civilian PowerCivilian PowerCivilian Power was a liberal political party in the Russian Federation, which prior to February 2007 was called Free Russia.According to data from Rosregistration, the party has 55,063 members...
. Registered candidate on January 21. - Vladimir ZhirinovskyVladimir ZhirinovskyVladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky is a Russian politician, colonel of the Russian Army, founder and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia , Vice-Chairman of the State Duma, and a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe....
- Deputy Speaker of the State DumaState DumaThe State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
and leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of RussiaLiberal Democratic Party of RussiaThe Liberal Democratic Party of Russia , Liberal'no-Demokraticheskaya Partiya Rossii is a political party in Russia. Since its founding in 1991, it has been led by the charismatic and controversial figure Vladimir Zhirinovsky...
. He ran for the presidency on three prior occasions: in 1991, 1996 and 2000. His best result was third with 7.81% support. Registered candidate on December 26. - Gennady ZyuganovGennady ZyuganovGennady Andreyevich Zyuganov is a Russian politician, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation , Chairman of the Union of Communist Parties - Communist Party of the Soviet Union , deputy of the State Duma , and a member of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe...
- Leader of the Communist Party of the Russian FederationCommunist Party of the Russian FederationThe Communist Party of the Russian Federation is a Russian political party. It is the second major political party in the Russian Federation.-History:...
and former presidential candidate, who ran for President in 1996 (when he came short just a few percent of the votes) and 2000, but not in 2004. Officially nominated on December 15, 2007 with 215 of 218 votes in favor. Registered candidate on December 26.
Boris Nemtsov
Boris Nemtsov
Boris Efimovich Nemtsov is a Russian politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of Russia from 1997 to 1998. He was a co-founder of the Russian political party Union of Right Forces and is an outspoken critic of Vladimir Putin.-Early life:...
, former Vice Prime Minister in Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet
Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet
Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet was the sixth cabinet of government of the Russian Federation, preceded by Viktor Chernomyrdin's Second Cabinet and followed by Yevgeny Primakov's Cabinet. It was led by Prime Minister Sergey Kiriyenko, appointed acting Prime Minister on March 23 and proposed to the...
, was nominated by the Union of Right Forces
Union of Right Forces
The Union of Right Forces, or SPS , was a Russian democratic opposition party associated with free market reforms, privatization, and the legacy of the 'Young Reformers' of the 1990s: Anatoly Chubais, Boris Nemtsov, and Yegor Gaidar. Nikita Belykh was the last party's leader...
on December 18, 2007 and became a registered candidate on December 22. He withdrew his bid on December 26, 2007 and called on his supporters to vote for Kasyanov instead.
Dismissed candidates
Central Election Commission disqualified a number of candidates.- Mikhail KasyanovMikhail KasyanovMikhail Mikhailovich Kasyanov - was the Prime Minister of Russia from May 2000 to February 2004.He is the leader of the People's Democratic Union and an ex-member of the opposition coalition "The Other Russia".-Political career:...
, a former Prime MinisterPrime Minister of RussiaThe Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation The use of the term "Prime Minister" is strictly informal and is not allowed for by the Russian Constitution and other laws....
and current leader of the People's Democratic UnionPeople's Democratic Union (Russia)The People's Democratic Union is a liberal opposition political party in Russia. Member of opposition coalition The Other Russia. The party was founded by former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov after he failed to win the leadership of the Democratic Party of Russia...
, was the fifth candidate. It was not known if Kasyanov would continue his candidacy after Garry Kasparov had entered the race, but on December 8, 2007 he reaffirmed he would run in the election. Registered candidate on December 14. He had registered successfully, but later it was decided that too many of his signatures of support were forged and he was disqualified. Kasyanov appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which rejected the appeal on February 6, 2008. Bogdanov has also had a similar criminal investigation opened against him, but it was reported that even if the accusations are proven, his candidacy will not be dismissed.
- Vladimir BukovskyVladimir BukovskyVladimir Konstantinovich Bukovsky is a leading member of the dissident movement of the 1960s and 1970s, writer, neurophysiologist, and political activist....
- Soviet-era dissident. On August 3, 2007 he received a new Russian passportRussian passportRussian passports are of two types: domestic passports issued to citizens of Russia for the purpose of certifying identity, international passports are issued for the purpose of international travel.- Internal passport :...
at the Russian Embassy in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He arrived in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
in October to launch his campaign. His bid was refused on the grounds that he didn't live in Russia in the last 10 years.
- Nikolai KuryanovichNikolai KuryanovichNikolai Kuryanovich ; 19 June 1966, Tulun, Irkutsk Oblast) - Russian politician, nationalist, Director of the Irkutsk branch of the Russian State Trade-Economic University, deputy of State Duma 4 convocation , member of the Central Council of the National Socialist Movement "Slavic...
- Ultra nationalist member of the State DumaState DumaThe State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
; an open admirer of both Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and Joseph StalinJoseph StalinJoseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
.
- Oleg SheninOleg SheninOleg Semyonovich Shenin was the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , which should not be confused with the larger UCP-CPSU....
- The leader of the small, hard line Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Shenin)Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Shenin)The Communist Party of the Soviet Union is an organization which split from the Union of Communist Parties — Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 2001 after disagreements between Oleg Shenin and Gennady Zyuganov over the creation of a united Communist Party of Russia and Belarus...
, which should not be confused with the larger UCP-CPSU. His bid was not registered due to bureaucratic mistakes in his documents.
Declared candidates
Many Russian politicians publicly indicated their intention to run for President in 2008, but failed to submit their nomination:- Garry KasparovGarry KasparovGarry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
, former World Chess Champion and United Civil FrontUnited Civil FrontUnited Civil Front is a social movement in Russia founded and led by chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov. It is part of The Other Russia, an opposition coalition active in Moscow...
leader. Before announcing his candidacy, he was previously inclined to endorse Viktor GerashchenkoViktor GerashchenkoViktor Vladimirovich Gerashchenko , byname Gerakl , was the Chairman of the Soviet and then Russian Central Bank during much of the Perestroika and post-Perestroika periods....
. He failed to nominate by the deadline, citing government obstructions in finding a suitable congress venue as the reason.
- Alexander DonskoyAlexander DonskoyAlexander Victorovich Donskoy is the mayor of the Northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk. He was the first Russian politician of national recognition who proclaimed intentions to run for the presidency in 2008. After announcing his intentions in 2006, he was arrested in July 2007 following charges...
, mayor of ArkhangelskArkhangelskArkhangelsk , formerly known as Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina River near its exit into the White Sea in the north of European Russia. The city spreads for over along the banks of the river...
. He was charged with abuse of office, detained for several months and released on March 6, 2008 with a probationary sentence.
- Viktor GerashchenkoViktor GerashchenkoViktor Vladimirovich Gerashchenko , byname Gerakl , was the Chairman of the Soviet and then Russian Central Bank during much of the Perestroika and post-Perestroika periods....
- Former head of the Central Bank and former deputy of the nationalist RodinaRodinaRodina or Motherland-National Patriotic Union was one of the four parties that controlled seats in the Russian legislature in 2003-2007...
party who has now joined the Other Russia coalition. He was initially the favored candidate of Garry KasparovGarry KasparovGarry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
.
- Sergei Gulyayev - Former St Petersburg YablokoYablokoThe Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" (Russian: Росси́йская объединённая демократи́ческая па́ртия «Я́блоко» Rossiyskaya obyedinyonnaya demokraticheskaya partiya "Yabloko"; is a Russian social...
regional legislator who announced his intention to run, despite the fact that YablokoYablokoThe Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" (Russian: Росси́йская объединённая демократи́ческая па́ртия «Я́блоко» Rossiyskaya obyedinyonnaya demokraticheskaya partiya "Yabloko"; is a Russian social...
's leader has also declared his intention to stand. Gulyayev was the fourth candidate from the Other Russia coalition to announce his candidacy.
- Gennadiy SeleznyovGennadiy SeleznyovGennadiy Nikolayevich Seleznyov is a Russian politician who was the Speaker of the Duma from 1996 to 2003.-Journalist:Gennadiy Seleznyov went to school from 1954 to 1964. He went to study journalism and joined the communist party. In 1969 he finished university and started working in the Pravda...
- Former Speaker of the DumaSpeaker of the DumaThe Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation , also called Speaker , is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Russian parliament...
(in 1995-2003); former member of the CPRF; leader of the socialist Party of Russia's RebirthParty of Russia's RebirthThe Party of Russia's Rebirth was a centrist social democratic political party in Russia led by Gennady Seleznev, former Duma speaker and then member of Communist Party of Russia....
.
- Grigory Yavlinsky, Leader of the YablokoYablokoThe Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" The Russian United Democratic Party "Yabloko" (Russian: Росси́йская объединённая демократи́ческая па́ртия «Я́блоко» Rossiyskaya obyedinyonnaya demokraticheskaya partiya "Yabloko"; is a Russian social...
party, who also stood for the presidency in 1996 and in 2000, was widely expected to run for the presidency as a candidate of united liberal parties. However, at the Yabloko congress, on December 14, 2007, it was announced that Yavlinsky and his party would support the candidacy of Bukovsky.
- Fair RussiaFair RussiaA Just Russia, , also translated as Fair Russia, is a social democratic political party in Russia currently holding 38 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. It was formed on October 28, 2006, as a merger of Rodina, the Russian Party of Life and the Russian Pensioners' Party. Later, 6 further minor...
announced on December 7, 2007 that they would not nominate their own candidate and would support another party's candidate instead (likely United RussiaUnited RussiaUnited Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
's).
Opinion polls
According to opinion polls taken prior to the election, up to 82% of people said that they would vote for Dmitry MedvedevDmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
, the candidate endorsed by Vladimir Putin as his preferred successor. The second most popular candidate was Gennady Zuganov, Leader of the Communist Party of Russia, who was expected to receive between 6% and 15% of the vote.
An opinion poll by the Yury Levada Analytical Center
VCIOM
All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion, VTsIOM, [established in 1987; till 1992 – All-Union Center for the Study of Public Opinion] is the oldest polling institution in the post-Soviet space and is one of the leading sociological and market research companies in Russia.-General...
, taken in September after Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
announced he would head the electoral list of United Russia
United Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
in the 2007 Parliamentary elections, showed a commanding lead for Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is a Russian senior official and statesman. He was Minister of Defence from March 2001 to February 2007, Deputy Prime Minister from November 2005 to February 2007, and the First Deputy Prime Minister from February 2007 to May 2008...
and Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
, with 34% and 30% of the vote respectively. Viktor Zubkov and Sergei Glazyev received only 4% of the vote each.
Incidents
During the pre-election debates on the Star TVZvezda (TV channel)
Zvezda is a Russian nationwide TV network run by the Russian Ministry of Defense. As of January 2008, Zvezda's CEO was Grigory Krichevsky, previously known for his work on Vladimir Gusinsky's NTV Channel in the late 1990s....
on February 20, Nikolai Gotsa, a representative of Bogdanov, accused Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his party of lying to and betraying their supporters. He accused them of voting in favor of government initiatives they criticize when in public. Zhirinovsky replied fiercely, insulting Gotsa and calling him a "sick man, a schizoid
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
", "bastard", and punched him when they went off the cameras. Bogdanov and Gotsa launched a legal issue against Zhirinovsky. On February 28, in another debate, Bogdanov claimed he had a personal talk with Zhirinovsky, and that the latter had threatened his life and demanded to withdraw the issue.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, in its capacity as an international election standards watchdog, refused to monitor the election because of what it called severe restrictions on its observers by the Russian government. After weeks of negotiations, Russia agreed to increase the observer numbers for the ODIHR mission and extend the time frame for its visit, but the ODIHR claimed that the offer still didn't meet their requirements, insisting that it needed to send at least 50 of its observers to Russia on February 15, five days before the date proposed by Moscow, in order effectively monitor the election campaign.
Russia responded by insisting that it was complying fully with its international obligations and that its invitation for 400 monitors meets international standards. It accused the OSCE of attempting to politicize the dispute and that it suspected ODIHR's intention from the outset was to boycott the election, saying that the ODIHR had displayed "contempt for basic ethical norms ... which, it seems, indicates that ODIHR from the start was not even trying to agree on mutually acceptable conditions for monitoring."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
Sergey Lavrov
Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov is the Foreign Minister of Russia. Prior to that, Lavrov was a Soviet diplomat and Russia's ambassador to the United Nations from 1994 to 2004. Lavrov speaks Russian, English, French and Sinhala....
stated that
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mikhail Kamynin, said "The ODIHR flatly rejected a compromise without providing any clear explanations for its position. We believe such actions are unacceptable." Kamynin added that Moscow "deeply regretted" the OSCE refusal, accusing the organization, which he said generally sends 10-20 experts to observe election campaigns one or two weeks ahead of polls, of political bias against Russia.
An incident arose during the election when three out of nine members of the Biysk
Biysk
Biysk is a city in Altai Krai, Russia. It is the second largest city of the krai . Population: -Geography:Biysk is situated in southwestern Siberia, on the Biya River . The city is called "the gates to the Altai Mountains", because of its position comparatively not far from this range...
Electoral Commission refused to sign the protocols citing widespread falsifications in their Priobsky Division. The rest of commission decided to approve the protocols as the alleged abuse was not reported during the election.
Election fairness
Representatives from the GOLOSGOLOS Association
For the Russian film, see Golos The GOLOS Association is a Russian civilian organization established in 2000 to protect the electoral rights of citizens and to foster civil society. As of 2008, the organization covers 40 Russian regions...
monitoring group stated that "the Election Day was held in a relatively quiet atmosphere in contrast to the State Duma election day
Russian legislative election, 2007
Legislative elections were held in the Russian Federation on 2 December 2007. At stake were the 450 seats in the State Duma, the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia . Eleven parties were included in the ballot, including Russia's largest party, United Russia, which was supported by...
. Such large-scale violations observed then as campaigning next to polling stations, transporting of voters, intimidation of voters and others were practically non-existent." They did however report irregularities in the election.
The Commonwealth of Independent States
Commonwealth of Independent States
The Commonwealth of Independent States is a regional organization whose participating countries are former Soviet Republics, formed during the breakup of the Soviet Union....
observer mission said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards. "The CIS observer mission states that the election is a major factor in the further democratization of public life in the Russian Federation, and recognizes it as free, open and transparent," said Nauryz Aidarov, head of the CIS mission.
Observers from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation or SCO , is an intergovernmental mutual-security organisation which was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
said the election was free, fair and in line with international standards.
An observing group from Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe , which held its first session in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949, can be considered the oldest international parliamentary assembly with a pluralistic composition of democratically elected members of parliament established on the basis of an...
stated that the result of the election was a "reflection of the will of an electorate whose democratic potential was, unfortunately, not tapped". They said "In the elections, which had more the character of a plebiscite on the last eight years in this country, the people of Russia voted for the stability and continuity associated with the incumbent President and the candidate promoted by him. The President-elect will have a solid mandate given to him by the majority of Russians."
The head of Russia's electoral commission Vladimir Churov
Vladimir Churov
Vladimir Yevgenyevich Churov is a Russian official and politician. Since March 26, 2007, he has been a member and the Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Russia....
said that media coverage for the presidential election had been "fair but not equal".
The Economist
The Economist
The Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
reported that Medvedev has been mentioned over six times more often than his three rivals in 1,000 different news sources, according to figures from SCAN, a media database owned by Interfax, but stated that this could be due to Medvedev's high profile job as chairman of the state-owned gas monopoly, Gazprom
Gazprom
Open Joint Stock Company Gazprom is the largest extractor of natural gas in the world and the largest Russian company. Its headquarters are in Cheryomushki District, South-Western Administrative Okrug, Moscow...
.
A report by the International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune
The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. It combines the resources of its own correspondents with those of The New York Times and is printed at 38 sites throughout the world, for sale in more than 160 countries and territories...
described Medvedev's election as "the culmination of Putin's efforts to consolidate control over the government, business and the news media since taking office eight years ago."
Russian Novaya Gazeta
Novaya Gazeta
Novaya Gazeta is a Russian newspaper well known in the country for its critical and investigative coverage of Russian political and social affairs....
claimed that there were forged election protocols and cases when independent observers were not allowed to monitor the election process. Journalist Victor Shenderovich
Victor Shenderovich
Victor Anatolievich Shenderovich is a popular Russian satirist, writer and scriptwriter. In 1980, Shenderovich graduated from the Moscow State Art and Cultural University, specialising in "direction of volunteer theatrical groups"...
claims that only 3.5% of voters came to the elections in certain North Caucasus regions according to independent observers, whereas the Central Election committee reporter more than 90% turnaround.
Response
According to Russia TodayRussia Today
Russia Today may refer to:* Russia Today, an English language 24-hour television news channel from Russia. It was launched in 2005 and is not related to an online news service of the similar name operated by EIN News...
, many in the Western media portrayed Russia's presidential election as nothing but a farce. It reported that the claims of rigging the election were not supported by the various international election monitoring organizations in attendance.
Political analyst and United Russia
United Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
member, Sergei Markov
Sergey Alexandrovich Markov
Sergei Alexandrovich Markov is a Russian political scientist, journalist, social activist. Doctor of Political Science, assistant professor of Public Policy department of Faculty of Philosophy of Moscow State University, professor of Faculty of Political Science of Moscow State Institute of...
, said that the outcome of this poll was predetermined because of how much support the Russian people show for Vladimir Putin's policies. "The Russian people have seen how successful these policies have been, and they want them to continue", he says. Markov cited fears that the West would interfere and change the course of the election, like they did in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
.
External links
- TrendLines Research International Election Projections Monthly Tracking chart of polling sentiment for the 3 leading contenders in next Russian Presidential election.
- Official results
- BBC NEWS Viewpoints: Russian presidential election Six Russians give their views on the election and predict the outcome.
- http://www.youtube.com/v/xGfwlkGNrBM; http://www.youtube.com/v/-E2ieEsmqBM - YouTube videos of electoral officials in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
trying to prevent the observers from registering an election fraud (they claim the box was stuffed with pro-Medvedev ballots prior to the poll opening); electoral officials attempting to expel observers with simulated terrorist threat and air-strike sirens.