Особенности, тенденции и факторы развития различных форм осуществления населением местного самоуправления в регионах Европейского Севера России

Abstract

The goal of this article is to study the features and trends in the development of various forms of local governance in Russia, with a particular focus on the regions falling within the European North of Russia (ENR). To achieve this goal, a combination of general research methods (analysis, synthesis, generalization, case study) and applied methods (such as grouping analysis, economic and statistical analysis, and sociological research methods) were used. The study relies on official statistics from Rosstat, reports from the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation, election and referendum data from the Vybory (Elections) system, and the results of questionnaire surveys of municipal leaders in the Vologda Oblast conducted from 2007 to 2022. The scientific novelty of the study lies in its assessment of the influence of various factors (territorial urbanization level and overall municipal development) on the nuances of residents' electoral participation from 2018 to 2022, using ENR municipalities as a case study. The research revealed that elections lacking a legally established voter turnout threshold witnessed notably low voter participation rates (ranging from 28 % to 41 % in the elections of senior officials of ENR regions from 2019 to 2022, 40% to 46% in the elections of State Duma deputies in 2021, and 8% to 71% in the elections of rural settlement heads). In most cases, municipalities with predominantly rural populations demonstrated higher election turnout rates and stronger support for winning candidates, a pattern that also holds in low-development areas within the Vologda Oblast. The article also discusses how local governors in the Vologda Oblast assess civil engagement from 2012 to 2022 and offers recommendations for regional-level monitoring of diverse forms of population involvement in territorial development, with an emphasis on local public governance.