Resolution October 21, 1999 No. 27/359-3 «On Certain Issues of Election Campaigning during Preparation for the Election of Deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the Third Convocation»
Central Election Commission Of The Russian Federation
Moscow
Having considered the issues of election campaigning, the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation notes that numerous complaints are received by election commissions from citizens, electoral associations and other election process participants about violations of the election campaigning rules and procedures established by the Federal Law «On the Election of Deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation» (hereinafter «the Federal Law»).
In violation of Clause 1 of Article 52 of the Federal Law, some candidates, electoral associations and electoral blocs carry out propaganda activities before the candidate or the federal list of candidates has been registered by the appropriate election commission. Through mass media or by other means they distribute informational materials containing open appeals to voters to cast their votes for this or that candidate, electoral association or electoral bloc and concealed propaganda encouraging or aimed at encourage voters to participate in the election, to vote for certain candidates, registered candidates, electoral associations, electoral blocs, or against them.
Voters' complaints, TV and radio programs, publications in mass media demonstrate that the editorial offices of periodicals, TV and radio broadcasting organizations and creative staff of the mass media quite often ignore the requirements of the Federal Law when they are covering elections, being guided by economic considerations or political preferences.
To be more specific, in violation of Clause 1 of Article 51, Clause 1 of Article 53, Article 55, and Clause 24 of Article 56 of the Federal Law, authors of informational and analytical programs and broadcasts devoted to the election campaign and activities of candidates, electoral associations and electoral blocs often accompany their news items with subjective comments on various events, negative or complimentary remarks about the electoral process participants. All this constitutes obvious elements of election propaganda conducted by persons whose participation in campaigning through mass media is prohibited by the Federal Law.
Commercial and other activities (such as public, political, cultural, educational, etc.) of election process participants are advertised during the election campaign. In violation of Clause 3 of Article 60 of the Federal Law, channels of the federal and regional TV and radio broadcasting organizations disseminate advertising materials of the leaders of some electoral associations, electoral blocs and candidates, which are paid for from sources other than appropriate electoral funds.
There were cases when provocative methods of pre-election «struggle» were used. For example, falsified and unreliable information about one of the leaders of the electoral bloc «Fatherland - All Russia» was placed in the Internet.
Negative response of the complainants is evoked by public statements made by officials of state bodies in support of certain candidates, electoral associations and electoral blocs or against them, which is violation of Clause 3 of Article 52 of the Federal Law prohibiting federal bodies of state power, persons who hold government and municipal offices and government and municipal employees from election campaigning.
Some propaganda-oriented public events were held with the participation of certain candidates, heads of electoral associations and electoral blocs. Among them there were candidates who were on the federal lists of the electoral bloc «Union of Right Forces» and the electoral association «All-Russian Public Political Movement «Our Home - Russia».
There are reports indicating that leaflets, brochures and other printed propaganda materials were distributed during the period when election campaigning was not allowed. This was done in the name and in favor of the electoral bloc «Fatherland - All Russia», electoral associations «Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR)», «Communist Party of the Russian Federation,» «Union of Democracy and Labor», «Association Yabloko,» or representatives of the said associations and blocs. In some cases the materials did not indicate the publisher's data, which is also a violation of applicable laws.
Some candidates, electoral associations and electoral blocs ignore the fact that campaigning activities conducted ahead of the time when they are allowed result in violation of campaign finance regulations established by the Federal Law. Documents coming to election commissions indicate that considerable amounts of money were paid to TV and radio broadcasting organizations as well as to other distributors of propaganda and advertising materials from sources other than the appropriate electoral funds, which is violation of Clause 3 of Article 60 and Clause 8 of Article 62 of the Federal Law.
In a number of cases participants in the election process attempt to justify their illegal actions by saying that they do not understand the proper meaning of certain provisions of the election legislation. Instead of preventing violations of the Federal Law they are using mass media to impose on the public a disputable assessment of election campaigning regulations established by law. This misleads the public and other participants in propaganda activities.
Guided by Articles 8, 24, 52, 53, 60, 62, 65 and 91 of the Federal Law «On the Election of Deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation», the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation r e s o l v e s:
To draw attention of candidates, registered candidates, electoral associations, and electoral blocs to the need for strict observation of the rules and procedures for election campaigning, established by the Federal Law.
To stress that the conduct by candidates, registered candidates, electoral associations and electoral blocs of illegal election propaganda, distribution of propaganda materials which have not been duly registered or have been paid for out of sources other than electoral funds will serve as the basis for application by the appropriate election commissions of measures established by the Federal Law, including refusal to register or annulment of registration of a candidate or a federal list of candidates.
1. To request heads of TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial offices of periodicals, their staff members and creative workers strictly to observe federal legislation requirements relating to the periods of and participants in the election campaigning through mass media, allocation of air time and printing space, payment for air time and printing space for these purposes, which must be made exclusively out of appropriate electoral funds, as well as the rules for election campaign coverage established by the Federal Law.
To clarify that the law obliges them to take necessary measures to exclude expression on the part of the mass media staff of any personal or corporate preferences for any candidate, registered candidate, electoral association or electoral bloc. Otherwise, in accordance with Clause 7 of Article 60 of the Federal Law, TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial offices of periodicals and their staff members shall be held liable for their illegal actions under Federal legislation.
2. To request heads of TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial offices of periodicals, their staff members and creative workers strictly to observe federal legislation requirements relating to the periods of and participants in the election campaigning through mass media, allocation of air time and printing space, payment for air time and printing space for these purposes, which must be made exclusively out of appropriate electoral funds, as well as the rules for election campaign coverage established by the Federal Law.
To clarify that the law obliges them to take necessary measures to exclude expression on the part of the mass media staff of any personal or corporate preferences for any candidate, registered candidate, electoral association or electoral bloc. Otherwise, in accordance with Clause 7 of Article 60 of the Federal Law, TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial offices of periodicals and their staff members shall be held liable for their illegal actions under Federal legislation.
3. To instruct the working group supervising observation by participants of the electoral process of the election campaigning rules during the election of deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the third convocation to establish close interaction with appropriate executive, law enforcement and other governmental bodies for investigating and assessing violations of election campaigning rules committed by electoral process participants and responding to these violations and to submit appropriate proposals to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation.
Whenever violations are committed of the rules for the spending of money from electoral funds for campaigning purposes to submit the relevant materials to the Auditing Service of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation.
4. To ask the General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation in cooperation with other law enforcement bodies and election commissions to intensify control over observance by the electoral process participants and mass media of the election campaigning rules, to expose and stop illegal propaganda, to prosecute guilty persons in accordance with the Federal Law requirements.
5. To require the election commissions of the Subjects of the Russian Federation, district, territorial and precinct election commissions established for the election of deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the third convocation to make full use of the powers vested in them to ensure the compliance by the electoral process participants with the election campaigning rules and observance of the procedure established by law for making payments for propaganda activities from appropriate electoral funds.
6. To publish this resolution in the Bulletin of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, in the newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta, and in the periodicals which come within Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 55 of the Federal Law.
A.A.Veshnyakov
Chairman
Central Election Commission
of the Russian Federation
O.K.Zastrozhnaya
Secretary
Central Election Commission
of the Russian Federation
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