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West Siberia
- Voters in West Siberia express above-average interest in politics and government. In all, 37% are interested while 61% are not interested in politics and government. As is the case elsewhere, they are highly dissatisfied with the situation in the country. Only 9% are satisfied and 89% are dissatisfied.
- West Siberians are more concerned about crime than average (62%) -- particularly threats to personal safety and property (26%). Unemployment is also a greater concern at 46%. Other responses are consistent with the national averages, including inflation (65%), Chechnya (39%), standard of living (55%), chaos (37%).
- In open-ended questioning, the economic crisis (32%) and quality of life (17%) lead the list and peace receives 12%.
- The region's voters are also more optimistic than average about the political situation (24% will get better - 30% will get worse) and on the economic front (27% better - 36% worse).
- West Siberians are highly supportive of a return to state control of the economy (60%). Just 13% would prefer to continue economic reforms.
- Voters in West Siberia are divided on whether Russia is a democracy or not (47% each).
- Voters in the region are also divided on whether political power should be centralized (36%) or decentralized (37%).
- Four out of 10 see Russia as a model for its own development (40%). 13% mention the U.S., 4% Sweden, 5% Germany, 5% Switzerland and 2% Japan. Only 2% say the Soviet Union (-6%).
- 39% say that Russia should be oriented toward neither the East nor the West. Otherwise, 29% believe Russia would benefit from a western orientation, 6% say the East, and 17% both.
- Voters here are very reliant on media organizations or personalities (54%) for information when making voting decisions. 30% are self-reliant, and 4% look to political parties. 89% say National Channel 1 is useful and 80% say Channel 2 is useful. Local television programs receive a 62% useful score (+8%). 61% say discussions with friends and family are useful. 65% say that newspapers are useful sources. Local radio is above-average at 58%. 33% say that magazine articles are useful. The top sources are National Channel 1 (35%) and Channel 2 (17%).
Institutions and Officials
- Perceptions of corruption are as follows: 53% say that official corruption is very common (-1%) and 29% say fairly common. 3% say that corruption is rare. 54% say that elected officials in Moscow are only interested in helping themselves and 3% say they are interested in improving our lives. 35% say their elected officials can make an improvement in their circumstances while 58% say they cannot.
- President Yeltsin's job approval score in this region stands at 24% approve and 70% disapprove. The Duma's approval score is 19% approve and 55% disapprove. 15% approve of the Federation Council and 40% disapprove.
Attitudes Toward the Electoral System
- In West Siberia, 53% believe there was at least some fraud in 1993 (-3%) and 46% say there will be fraud in the 1995 elections (-2%).
- Voters in West Siberia are the least likely to blame the CEC of all regions and place a higher focus on local entities.
11%
|
Central Election Commission
|
6%
|
Executive Branch
|
6%
|
Other central authorities
|
9%
|
Local election offices
|
12%
|
Local executive authorities
|
5%
|
Political parties
|
11%
|
Local candidate organizations
|
28%
|
All of these
|
- Improper voting practices have the following scores. No one reports seeing financial incentives being offered to voters. 2% saw poll watchers and 1% saw local/election officials try to influence votes. Just 3% say they felt their ballot wouldn't be kept secret. Reports of group voting are low at 7%.
- Voters here have less than average knowledge score on the CEC. In all, 7% have read or heard a fair amount or more, and 58% have heard nothing at all (+7%). The CEC's job approval here is about average as 20% say they are doing their job well and 21% say poorly.
- 70% support the computerization of elections and 11 % are opposed.
- A majority of voters in this region oppose allowing candidates for the State Duma (54%), the Federation Council (55%), and the Presidency (56%) to receive private campaign contributions. 61% say that a ceiling should be established for such contributions, 70% support a minimum voting threshold for validating elections.
- Only 11% would like to increase the number of Duma representatives who are elected from party lists, 2% want more from single mandate constituencies, 39% would like the system to stay the same and 44% don't know.
- 57% say the Federation Council should be directly elected, 12% call for indirect elections, and 9% think members should be appointed by the President.
Voting Patterns
- Voters in West Siberia are also less likely to vote than most other areas. Only 68% say they plan to vote in the Duma elections, and 26% say they will not - more than any other region. The percentage of those saying they are certain to vote is 38%. 25% of those age 17-35 are likely voters.
- Projected turnout for the presidential elections is at 75% with a definite vote of 46%.
- Vote efficacy scores in the region are as follows: 51% (-2%) believe that by voting, people can actually change something in the life of our country and 45% (+5) say this is not possible.
- The following table rank orders the results of the Presidential ballot test in the region.
Lebed
|
16%
|
Yavlinsky
|
12%
|
Yeltsin
|
12%
|
Chernomyrdin
|
8%
|
Rutskoi
|
7%
|
Solzhenitsyn
|
7%
|
Zyuganov
|
5%
|
Zhirinovsky
|
4%
|
Gaidar
|
3%
|
Kozyrev
|
2%
|
Staravoitova
|
2%
|
Shumeiko
|
1%
|
Shakhrai
|
1%
|
Rybkin
|
1%
|
Don't Know
|
19%
|
Political Parties
- In West Siberia, 64% say that political are necessary for Russian democracy and 22% say they are not. 48% strongly believe that parties are necessary.
Support for having just one party is 6% above average at 23%. A 37% plurality, however, feel that the ideal is several parties.
The problem of party definition is also fairly pronounced in West Siberia. Although 30% say there are clear differences between the parties, 47% feel there are not clear differences. In all, only 3% say they are members of a party. 21% say they are more likely to vote for a candidate who is affiliated with a political party, 29% who are more likely to vote for an unaffiliated candidate, and 39% who say it makes no difference.
Overall, 61% say that political parties speak to the issues that concern the Russian electorate and 24% say they do not.
- In the Duma ballot, the results are as follows:
Communist Party
|
16%
|
Women of Russia
|
13%
|
Yabloko
|
10%
|
Russia's Democratic Choice
|
10%
|
Democratic Party of Russia
|
5%
|
Derzhava
|
4%
|
LDPR
|
3%
|
Agrarian Party
|
1%
|
Our Home Russia
|
1%
|
Party of Unity and Accord
|
1%
|
Forward Russia
|
1%
|
Movement for Dem. Reforms
|
1%
|
None
|
19%
|
Don't Know
|
12%
|
Voter Education
* 50% say they received enough information from election officials so that they understood the election process;
* West Siberian voters are somewhat better informed than average as 5% have a great deal of information about the Democratic process, 16% have a fair amount, 53% have not very much, and 18% have none at all.
* 75% agree (56% strongly) that they don't have enough information with regard to their rights with regard to the authorities.
* 34% (+1%) say they received enough information about the candidates or parties to make a good choice in the 1993 Parliamentary elections and 43% did not.
* However, only 11% are very or somewhat familiar with their voting rights (-4%) and 41% are not at all familiar - a number that is significantly higher than the average of 34%.
* 17% didn't have enough information on how to check the voter registry and 22% had too little information on means of alternative voting.
* Misunderstandings about voting rights include the following: 18% believe a family member can vote on your behalf by presenting your passport (16% below average and the lowest in Russia); 35% say that those who don't currently reside in Russia may not vote. Unlike East Siberia, a majority (57%) say that prisoners may vote.
* Only 18% say that those who don't speak Russian may not vote.
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