Election Commissions Research Articles

Особенности конституционно-правовой ответственности избирательных комиссий на современном этапе развития российского избирательного права

The article analyzes the specifics of the constitutional responsibility of election commissions. The correlation of constitutional and electoral responsibility is analyzed. It is concluded that there is a comprehensive responsibility that has features of both constitutional and electoral responsibility. The existence of a complex dual mechanism for bringing to the constitutional responsibility of election commissions, including both judicial mechanisms and mechanisms implemented within the system of election commissions, is emphasized. Finally, there is a breadth of responsibility measures that is not characteristic of any other subjects, except for election commissions.

Рискогенные факторы избирательного процесса в современной России

Relevance of the research topic is based on the change of the focus of development of electoral law and procedure towards creation of reliable guarantees of security of electoral rights of citizens in the conditions of the special military operation, informational and ideological war and sanctions pressure of the West on the Russian Federation. The article reviews risk-posing factors of the electoral procedure, suggests ways to minimize them, to create a legal mechanism to regulate them and to manage such risks with the help of cutting-edge scientific research results. Realities of the elections of the President of the Russian Federation in March 2024 gave birth to new legal regimes for holding thereof: regime of high alert to a situation of emergency and even the state of martial law. However, the applicable laws fail to transform in due time to keep pace with the rapidly changing circumstances, so legal gaps are filled in by election commissions. Arising problems in the border territories were solved quickly thanks in large part to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, election commissions of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, supreme officials of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

Restriction of Passive Suffrage in the Legislation of the Russian Federation

Introduction. Suffrage is one of the most frequently reformed areas of the national legislation of the Russian Federation. Permanent law making activity and its further interpretation in the frame of law enforcement practices of holding the elections to public authorities not only fail to resolve the disputable issues, but arise the new ones referring to the electoral system regulation. The most important objective in the present day studies of the passive suffrage is to identify the legal collisions and make proposals for filling in the legal gaps encountered by the law enforcers in the context of the tasks set forth before them, i.e. to ensure implementation of the passive suffrage of the candidates. Nowadays, the need to carry out the legal analysis of the impact imposed by the conceptual legislative innovations on using the right to passive suffrage has become evident. The aim of this paper is to analyse the existing restrictions of passive suffrage, as well as to study the eligibility and limits of these restrictions.Materials and Methods. In the article, the recently published works of native scientists, the mass media materials, federal legislation, decisions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation in the studied area, the regulatory legal acts adopted by the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, as well as the results of the work of the election commissions have been analysed. The study was based on such commonly accepted methods of scientific cognition as the dialectical and dogmatic-legal methods, as well as the methods of analysis, synthesis, induction and deduction.Results. The issues of legitimacy of establishing the additional restrictions to the rights of citizens have been investigated. The conclusion has been made not only of great importance to protect the human rights and freedoms, but of urgent need to comply with the legal restrictions of these rights. The concepts of restrictions and violations of the human and civil rights and freedoms have been differentiated, and the statutory expression of the suffrage restrictions has been analysed. Except for the constitutional provisions (legal capability and criminal record), the content of the additional restrictions introduced at the federal level and referring to the age, residence qualification, presence or absence of a criminal record of committed crimes and torts of extremism has also been disclosed.Discussion and Conclusion. The essence of the passive suffrage restrictions implies imposing the certain requirements and conditions on a person for him to acquire the eligibility to stand as a candidate in the elections to the public authorities. The system of suffrage restrictions is designed to ensure the high-quality of formation, complete functionality and professionalism of the elected authorities and officials, however could also become a tool for fighting against the opposition.

Гарантии трудовых прав членов избирательных комиссий: обеспечение конституционного права или тактический прием против работодателя?

The article deals with labor rights guarantees of members of election commissions. Considering court practice authors give possible variants of employer’s position in the court proving lawfullness of dismissal of employee-member of election commission.

ANTI-CORRUPTION RESPONSIBILITIES OF CANDIDATES ACCORDING TO THE LEGISLATION OF KAZAKHSTAN (based on materials of the election campaign for the elections of the Mazhilis of Kazakhstan 2023)

The article notes that the institution of elections is one of the important elements of state security in any state. In this regard, it is common practice to enshrine in national electoral legislation provisions aimed at ensuring law and order in various spheres of life. Anti-corruption norms occupy a special place in electoral legislation. The article notes that the institution of elections is one of the important elements of state security in any state. In this regard, it is common practice to enshrine in national electoral legislation provisions aimed at ensuring law and order in various spheres of life. Anti-corruption norms occupy a special place in electoral legislation. According to the author, the enshrinement of anti-corruption responsibilities in the electoral legislation is connected to a greater extent not with electoral law, but with the legislation defining the legal status of deputies and elected officials. The author examines the features of establishing anti-corruption responsibilities in the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as electoral practice. In most cases, the judicial authorities decided to uphold the decision of the relevant election commission to cancel the registration of a candidate. Moreover, in a number of cases, candidates managed to overturn the decision of the election commission to refuse registration. An analysis of electoral practice led to the conclusion that in most cases, many offenses in the area under consideration were the result of candidates’ legal illiteracy, their inattention, and the amount of unreliable information was most often insignificant. In this regard, it is concluded that the legislation should allow election commissions and judicial bodies to more widely use their own discretion when resolving such cases.

Избирательные правоотношения: правовая природа и роль в системе делегирования власти народом

The article reviews the legal nature and essence of electoral relations, defines their relevance. The author expresses an idea that electoral relations constitute the sphere that combines two key democracy angles: implementation of the mechanism of delegation of power by the people that includes exercising of subjective political rights of citizens and democratic establishment of legitimate public government authorities that are objectively needed for functioning of the state. The role of electoral relations in the system of delegation of power by the people seems to lie in harmonization of these two aspects. The paper notes the importance and timeliness of development of spheres of electoral relations associated with improvement of public control at elections, electronic voting in the online format, enhancement of implementation of the principle of inadmissibility of any foreign impact on the electoral process, provision of opportunity to exercise electoral rights to Russian citizens living or staying in foreign countries, increased role of the Central Election Commission of Russia and the entire system of election commissions in regulation and structuring of mechanisms of the direct rule of the people. The author emphasizes the need for development of personal responsible attitude to delegation of power by the people in the individual and public electoral legal consciousness.

A STUDY ON MAIL MANAGEMENT OPTIMIZATION THROUGH THE SENAPATI APPLICATION IN ELECTION ORGANIZATIONS

Effective and efficient mail management is an important aspect for the General Election Commission of the Republic of Indonesia (KPU) in carrying out its duties. This study aims to understand the effectiveness and sustainability of incoming and outgoing mail management through the Senapati system at the Depok City General Election Commissions. This study uses a qualitative method with data collection techniques through in-depth interviews, observations, and document analysis. Testing the validity of data using the source triangulation method. This study shows that the Senapati application has proven effective in increasing the effectiveness of incoming and outgoing mail management at the Depok City General Election Commissions. This is evidenced by the reduced time to process letters, increased accuracy of letter data, and increased user satisfaction. However, the sustainability of the Senapati application management still needs to be improved. This study contributes to providing an understanding of the effectiveness and sustainability of incoming and outgoing mail management through the Senapati system at the Depok City General Election Commissions.

Двойное и множественное гражданство в Российской Федерации: перспективы развития правового регулирования

Introduction. After the legislative distinction between the concepts of “dual citizenship” and “multiple citizenship”, predicting the prospects for the development of legal regulation of social relations emerging in the field of dual and multiple citizenship, as well as development of practical proposals to consolidate the legal status of persons with multiple citizenship in the Russian Federation, becomes relevant. Theoretical analysis. The author examined the legislation of the Russian Federation regulating the legal status of persons with dual and multiple citizenship, in particular, analyzed the current legislative restrictions and prohibitions established for this category of persons. Empirical analysis. The author studied the problem of exercising electoral rights by citizens of the Russian Federation with multiple citizenship, including the problem of renouncing the citizenship of a foreign state, and analyzed judicial practice on challenging decisions of election commissions of municipalities on the annulment of registration/refusal to register candidates for deputies. Results. The author proposes the concept of the Federal Law “On the legal status of persons with multiple citizenship in the Russian Federation”: legislative consolidation of the concept of “person with multiple citizenship”, formulation of the goals of establishing prohibitions for persons with multiple citizenship, establishment of additional prohibitions for persons with multiple citizenship in the sphere of the use of electoral rights, in particular, the ban on passive suffrage (the right to be elected) in municipal elections, the ban on active suffrage (the right to vote) for persons with multiple citizenship permanently residing outside the Russian Federation.

Communication Strategy of Makassar City Election Commission in Recruitment of Election Committee Organizers

The purpose of the study is to find out and describe the communication strategy of the Makassar City Election Commission in recruiting KDP organizers for the 2024 Election has been carried out or not, as well as to know and explain the challenges faced by the Makassar City Election Commission in recruiting KDP organizers for the 2024 Election. The research was conducted at the Makassar City KPU (General Election Commissions) Office. This type of research uses a qualitative approach, with 4 (four) informants. Data collection techniques consist of observation, interview guidelines and documentation. Data analysis techniques use qualitative analysis with three stages, namely data reduction, data presentation, data verification, and conclusions. The results of the study found that the communication strategy applied by the KPU in recruiting KDP organizers for the 2024 election has been well implemented through the KPU website, and is also maximized on social media in the form of Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter). Furthermore, the communication strategy was implemented by conducting socialization in the form of recruitment banners on all channels and making press conferences so that the public knew information on KDP receipts organized by the Makassar City KPU. The challenges to the communication strategy of the KPU in the 2024 election related to the implementation of KDP recruitment are several things, namely macro problems, technical problems, and ad hoc HR problems.

Место электоральных норм в конституции (на примере конституций стран Восточной и Юго-Восточной Азии)

The article is a comparativist study of the problem of election regulation in the constitutions of the East and South- East Asian countries. The main attention is paid to the legal-technical aspect of the problem, namely, the solution of the question of which chapters (parts, sections) of the text of a particular state constitution incorporate the norms on elections. In most constitutions of the under study region countries, the articles regulating elections and related issues are scattered in several sections. The analysis of the texts of the constitutions has allowed us to identify six main sections in which the norms on elections are present. These are, firstly, the section on citizens' rights and freedoms, secondly, the sections on state bodies, and thirdly, on local self-government bodies. Slightly less often articles on elections are incorporated into the section declaring the democratic system of the state. The fifth and sixth variants are found only in a few constitutions — these are the section on election commissions and a specialized section (part, chapter) of the constitution devoted exclusively to elections.

История становления и развития института наблюдателей на выборах в России

Introduction. Elections are one of the most massive social and political processes in the state. Elections in the state, the mechanism of their organization and conduct are subject to the fundamental principles of electoral law, which are based on publicity and openness of all electoral actions and procedures. Ensuring the transparency of elections is an indicator of the mechanism of interaction between society and the state, as an indicator of democratic development. Accordingly, the task of state bodies is to form the regulatory and legal conditions for the participation of civil society actors in ensuring the openness of the procedure for organizing and conducting voting, as a component of the democratic process of exercising public power in the country. Observers, along with other tools, are built into the mechanism for exercising public control over elections in Russia. Theoretical analysis. The institution of observers in Russia has certain patterns of development, interdependent histories of formation of socio-political institutions and elections in general. As the circle of subjects of electoral legal relations is being transformed, including the nomination and registration of candidates for elective positions, as well as the process of forming election commissions, the circle of persons entitled to participate in the procedure for appointing observers and giving them legal status is also changing. At the same time, the functional role of observers is subordinate to the development of forms and methods of voting in the state and formation of the features of the country’s electoral system, taking into account its historical features. Empirical analysis. The modern development of the legal regulation of the status of observers in Russia is associated with the expansion of the circle of entities that have the right to appoint observers, as well as the list of election commissions in which the subjects in question have the right to exercise powers. This trend is associated with the development of the institution of public control in elections in Russia as a whole. Accordingly, the Federal Law “On the Fundamentals of Public Control in the Russian Federation” began to extend its effect to electoral legal relations, and, as a result, the subjects of public control have the right to appoint election observers. The range of election commissions in which observers have the right to exercise their functions has expanded to include district and territorial election commissions. At the same time, the terms of reference of observers have remained unchanged, which does not correspond to the trends in the development of their legal status. Results. Taking into account the development of civil society and its institutions in Russia and the increase in their functional role in conjunction with the transformation of the electoral system and information and digital technologies, it is necessary to detail the status of observers depending on their participation in the work of election commissions of various levels and forms of voting, including multi-day voting. The terms of reference of an observer cannot be identical, taking into account the nature and specifics of work in district, territorial and precinct election commissions. Voting within a few days creates prerequisites for empowering observers with additional powers, taking into account the need to ensure the safety of ballots and implement additional forms of voting.

Legal and socio-economic consequences of depriving the nomadic population of voting rights in the territory of East Kazakhstan (1926-1936)

The study of the Soviet society formation’s and the total system’s history is closely connected with the study of the repressive policy of the state, as well as those categories of the population that became its victims. The deprivation of voting rights was not only political, but also social in nature: due to the fact that the «disenfranchised» were limited in access to social rights. This measure was carried out in broader statistics of several functions: preventing increased attention to infectious agents, artificially structuring society, establishing control over the detection of the population’s part, maintaining an atmosphere of confrontation and division in society. This issue is relevant for the current state of Kazakhstan’s society, which extends discrimination against certain groups and groups of the population for various reasons, from ethnic to religious, both in Kazakhstan and in the territories of other republics of the former USSR. The article is devoted to the process of transformation of the social status of the inhabitants of the East Kazakhstan region, deprived of voting rights in the period 1926-1936. The author discusses the practice of the work of Soviet authorities and election commissions on the deprivation of this type of rights, analyzes the socio-economic and legal consequences of this repressive measure.

Powers of the Election Commission of a Constituent Entity of the Russian Federation to Determine the Organizational Basis for Municipal Elections: Peculiarities of Regional Legislation

The article deals with the issue of empowering territorial election commissions to prepare municipal elections. The abolition of municipal election commissions has created a situation in which regional legislation gives different answers to the question of whether the territorial election commission acquires the authority to organize municipal elections by virtue of law or by virtue of a decision of the regional election commission. The consequences of one or another variant of the answer are considered. In this regard, the composition of the powers and the role of the election commission of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation in determining the organizational basis of municipal elections becomes problematic. By comparative analysis of the laws of the constituent entity of the Federation on the organization of municipal elections and the laws defining the powers of regional election commissions, the author identifies three groups of subjects of the Federation, which present three different conceptual approaches to the possibility of influencing the organizational basis of municipal elections at the regional level. The article compares the procedure for assigning powers for the preparation of municipal elections, which was in force until 2022 and had a dispositive character, and the procedure for the acquisition by territorial election commissions of municipal electoral powers, which began to operate in March 2022 and demonstrated regional variability in different subjects of the Russian Federation. The author concludes on the preservation of constituent entity of the Russian Federation of discretion on the assignment of powers to organize municipal elections to the territorial election commissions and after March 2022 in the electoral legislation. Suggestions are expressed regarding the possibility of changing approaches to financing municipal elections.

Взаимодействие избирательных комиссий с иными органами публичной власти: новеллы законодательства

A number of changes made to Russian electoral legislation since 2020 have been studied, significantly changing the procedure for interaction of election commissions with other public authorities both during election campaigns and in the inter-election period. It has been established that the corresponding connections are of a complex nature and are manifested in various forms, the number of which increases as new electoral and legal reforms are implemented. It is noted that trends in the legal regulation of this area of relations are contradictory. Attention is focused on strengthening and complicating the connections of election commissions with executive bodies of state power while simultaneously removing local governments from participation in the electoral process as independent eligible subjects while maintaining their organizational and technical responsibilities. It has been established that the system of election commissions is becoming more isolated and increasingly acquiring the features of a hierarchical structure, in which the leading role belongs to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation. A significant increase in recent years has been revealed in the volume of rule-making powers of the Russian Central Election Commission in the field of by-law regulation of relations in the preparation and conduct of elections, as well as the expansion of atypical functions of election commissions, especially manifested in conditions of emergency legal regimes. It is concluded that in the considered legislative innovations there is a single purposeful logic of the federal legislator, the implementation of which will most likely continue in the coming years. It is recommended to ensure that a balance is maintained in the relations of public authorities when carrying out further reforms of the electoral legislation.

Meta-analysis of blockchain-powered electronic voting systems

Electronic voting systems are increasingly becoming popular globally for political and non-political purposes. The three key constraints for lack of trust in e-voting systems are security, transparency, and voter privacy. Blockchain is a promising technology that addresses these needs. This study uses a meta-analysis approach to identify key themes, trends, and considerations from current blockchain-based electronic voting system research. The study lists topics that are of potential future research interest and benefit various stakeholders, including researchers, government agencies, election commissions, and electoral bodies.

Comparative Study of the General Election Commission (KPU) in the United States and South Korea

According to Article 22 E of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, Indonesia is a democratic country where the people hold the highest power with a representative system, namely general elections. General elections are one way for people to participate in politics. The type of research used is library research, where the research is centered in the library to obtain data without carrying out field research. So the data source is obtained using literature or regulations and norms related to the problem to be studied, namely in the form of books that examine the Position and Authority of the General Election Commission (KPU). The results of the research are 1) That the Juridical Study of the Position and Authority of the General Election Commission (KPU) in the perspective of the State Administration of the Republic of Indonesia is to realize the instrument of popular sovereignty, which aims to create a legitimate government and provide a way for the people to express their ambitions and interests. 2) That the comparison of the position and authority of the General Election Commission (KPU) in the United States and South Korea is that the United States has two general election commissions, namely the Electoral College and the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

About the Problems of Party Representation in the Composition of Precinct Election Commissions

The article analyzes one of the relevant problems for the current electoral law of the Russian Federation, the problem of ensuring party representation in the formation of precinct election commissions. In accordance with the current electoral legislation of the Russian Federation, at least half of the composition of each precinct election commission is formed on the basis of proposals from parties represented in the federal and regional parliaments. However, for certain constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the issue of ensuring the principle of guaranteeing representation of all parliamentary parties in precinct election commissions is acute, since the problem of disproportionate representation arises, to the point that individual political parties are not allowed to be members of the majority of precinct election commissions. The purpose of our research is to develop a legislative solution that makes it possible “painlessly” for the law enforcement officer to provide guarantees for equal party representation for everyone. The research methodology is based on a theoretical analysis of the legal acts of the Russian Federation on the issue of ensuring a multi-party system using the example of the formation of precinct election commissions in the Primorsky Territory. The object of observation is the precinct election commissions of the Primorsky Territory during their formation in 2023. The scientific novelty lies in the formation of the author's approach to the legislative solution to the problem of ensuring multi-party system in the formation of precinct election commissions. This study proposes a solution to the problem under consideration that is accessible to law enforcement officials.

ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ФУНКЦІОНУВАННЯ ДЕРЖАВНОЇ МОВИ ПІД ЧАС ВИБОРІВ В УКРАЇНІ: ПРОБЛЕМИ ДОСТАТНОСТІ

The article is devoted to the issues of ensuring the functioning of the state language during the elections in Ukraine. A detailed analysis of the constitutional and legal support for the functioning of the state language during the elections in Ukraine is carried out, examples of the legal positions of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the European Court of Human Rights on this issue are given. Attention is drawn to the language qualification established by the Constitution of Ukraine for candidates for the post of President of Ukraine and the absence of such a qualification (both at the level of the Constitution and at the level of the electoral law) for candidates for people's deputies of Ukraine, deputies of local councils and village, town and city heads. The annual reports of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language on the use of the latter in the elections of 2020 and 2021 are also analyzed. Proposals are developed to improve the regulation of the functioning of the state language during the elections in Ukraine through appropriate constitutional and legislative changes, as well as regulatory and institutional strengthening of the activities of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language. Keywords: state language, elections, election commissions, candidates, Commissioner for Protection of State Language.

JAMOATCHILIK FIKRINI OʻRGANISHNI HUQUQIY TARTIBGA SOLISH MASALALARI

"The article examines the legislation and practice of Uzbekistan, international standards, and foreign experience in studying public opinion. The purpose of the study is to improve the legal basis of this process and eliminate existing shortcomings. During the study of national legislation, it was established that the concept of “studying public opinion” needs to be improved, the procedure for its implementation has not been developed, the forms and means of its implementation are accordingly absent from scientific circulation and have not been applied according to their meaning, and other problems have been identified. Views, practices, and regulations about public opinion and its study were studied through analysis, functional, structural, comparative, formal, legal, and other methods. As a result, the content of public opinion and its study were revealed, and the definition in national legislation of the general rules of this process was justified, including the need to determine the information that should be published to assess the quality and impartiality of the results of the study and the need to prohibit their publication during a referendum and on the day before it starts. The author put forward a proposal to entrust the Association of Sociologists of Uzbekistan and the Central Election Commission with the development of methodological recommendations for the study of public opinion and control over the implementation of these recommendations and legal norms in this area with the election commissions."

Governance of Technical Guidance at the Voting Organizing Group (KPPS) level in the 2019 Election in Tebing Tinggi City: Determinants of the Continuity of Democracy

This study aims to describe the Governance of Technical Guidance at the Voting Organizing Group (KPPS) level in the 2019 Election in Tebing Tinggi City as a determinant of the sustainability of democracy. This study used a qualitative type of research, so that researchers could obtain direct and more detailed information from informants by telling the steps taken by the Tebing Tinggi City KPU (General Election Commissions) in conducting technical guidance on KPPS and the impact on participants in Bimtek. This research was conducted at the Tebing Tinggi City KPU, North Sumatra Province in the 2019 Election. The results showed that the KPPS in this case worked according to the capabilities and understanding found from the results of following technical guidance carried out by PPK and PPS in stages. However, the biggest obstacle to KPPS technical guidance in the 2019 elections in Tebing Tinggi City was constrained by several of the following factors, namely: 1. Budget, 2. Time Planning and 3. Technical Guidance Method. Researchers found the most effective formula used, namely the Simulation method in conducting technical guidance on KPPS to make it more effective.