Parties In Ukraine Research Articles

The right of political parties to reimbursement of expenses for election campaigning in parliamentary elections in Ukraine and EU member states

The article is devoted to the study of the right of political parties to reimbursement of expenses during election campaigning for parliamentary elections. The author analyses the forms of state funding of political parties and its purpose. Based on the analysis of European regional standards in the field of organisation and functioning of political parties, the author identifies the following principles of exercising the right of political parties to reimbursement of expenses during election campaigning in parliamentary elections: the amount of state funding should guarantee its benefit; funding is distributed impartially, on the basis of objective, fair and reasonable criteria; the mechanism for distribution of state support for political parties should be enshrined in the relevant legislation; the mechanism of distribution of state support for political parties should be enshrined in the relevant legislation; the distribution of funding may be either equal or proportional in nature; the maximum amount of political party spending on election campaigns and transparency of their conduct should be determined at the legislative level. The experience of some EU Member States in legislating direct and indirect state funding of political parties’ election campaigns is considered. The author analyses the national experience of reimbursement of political parties’ expenses for election campaigning in parliamentary elections. It is established that, in accordance with European regional standards, some systems of distribution of state support to political parties provide them with funds before the elections, while others provide for payments after the elections based on the final results. It is noted that the system of post-election financing may not provide the minimum initial financial resources necessary to ensure the election campaign of a political party. The author concludes that there is a need to review some issues of reimbursement of election campaign expenses to political parties in Ukraine in terms of securing at the legislative level their ability to receive from the State budget not only reimbursement of the above expenses after the elections, but also certain funds which parties may use for election campaigning during the election process.

The theme of Cossacks in Shcherbytskyi's work

Soviet heritage in Ukraine is not only monuments to Lenin and cultural stereotypes, but also infrastructure and industry. The fact that Ukraine is still a space state is also a Soviet legacy. It is obvious that the complexity and ambiguity of the Soviet past should call for more reflections on various topics related to the USSR. For example, in studies of the "Soviet" period, the modernization approach is practically not used, many topics remain outside the attention of researchers, the main focus is only on negative experiences (repressions, Holodomor, Russification). This is often a criticism not only of the Bolsheviks, but actually of the entire leftist idea and a kind of negative discrediting advance for future leftist organizations and parties in Ukraine. In addition, "Soviet" is often evaluated as something static, non-dynamic, purely negative. But the Soviet Ukraine of Kaganovich and Kosior is not the Soviet Ukraine of Shelest and Shcherbytskyi. There were changes in the average life expectancy of citizens of the republic and the structure of the family. At the same time, the process of Russification of the population intensified, one of the greatest man-made disasters in the history of mankind occurred, and the oppression of dissidents continued.

Features of the legal status of political parties as legal entities: comparative-legal characteristics

In the article, the author examines political parties as subjects of civil relations. The characteristics of political parties as legal entities are analyzed: organizational unity, which is expressed in the fact that parties, as organizations, have a certain structure and a system of bodies; the sign of separate property of political parties has a certain specificity, with peculiarities in the ways of acquiring ownership rights over the property of political parties. Political parties, as legal entities, bear civil liability, and they can independently appear in court as defendants.
 The author also examines the doctrine and legislation of Western countries regarding the concept, creation, and activities of political parties in Germany, the United States, Great Britain, and Serbia. The concept of a political party in Western countries is considered, with a political party in Serbia, understood as a voluntary association of citizens, created with the aim of achieving political goals through the democratic formation of the political will of citizens and participation in elections. A political party in Serbia is granted the status of a legal entity from the date of its entry into the register of political parties.
 A distinctive feature of political parties in Germany is their ambiguous legal status. By their legal nature, they are private organizations, created in accordance with the norms of private law; however, they also possess a public character due to certain constitutional privileges, granted to them.
 The article explores the issue of the legal nature of political parties in Ukraine and the features that distinguish political parties from other public associations. The author examines the issue of the legal personality of political parties and points out that they possess two components - social and political.
 Furthermore, the article analyzes the criteria for categorizing legal entities as either private or public law entities in the law of Ukraine and in the law of France. In French law, such criteria include the following: the establishment of a legal entity originating from public or private initiative, the rules governing its creation, operation, and oversight by public authorities, the method of financing (public subsidies or mandatory payments), and the presence of public authorities

Problems of legal regulation of prohibition of political parties in Ukraine

The article is devoted to certain legal aspects of the regulation of the ban on the activity of political parties in Ukraine, and considers the theoretical and practical problems of its application. The Constitution of Ukraine provides 11 separate grounds for banning political parties, the list of which is exhaustive.The Law of Ukraine “On Political Parties in Ukraine” provides additional grounds for banning political parties that are not established by the Constitution. In 2022, the list of reasons for the termination of the activities of political parties was expanded, the specified changes were introduced by the Law of Ukraine “On the prohibition of propaganda of the Russian Nazi totalitarian regime, armed aggression of the Russian Federation as a terrorist state against Ukraine, symbols of the military invasion of the Russian Nazi totalitarian regime in Ukraine” No. 2265-IX dated 05/22/2022 [3] and the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Prohibition of Political Parties” No. 2243-IX dated 05/03/2022 The practice of banning political parties is not widespread in European countries and has its own characteristics.On the basis of the analysis of the legislation of Ukraine, including taking into account the changes introduced during the martial law, the legislation of certain foreign countries, taking into account the relevant European standards regarding the prohibition of political parties, the shortcomings of the current legislation were determined and relevant conclusions were drawn regarding possible ways of its improvement, in particular , the following issues should find normative regulation: each individual case of banning the activity of a political party must correspond not only to official legal grounds, but must also encompass historical prerequisites, political traditions, and constitutional doctrine; improvement of the mechanism of state control over the activities of political parties, which will include the rules of representativeness of political parties and criteria for the legality of identification of a member of a political party with the corresponding political party in connection with the illegal actions of some of its members; the possibility of extrajudicial forced suspension of the activities of political parties during the war; consolidating the institution of suspending the activities of parties in martial law conditions, placing on the competent body of state power the obligation to raise the issue of the banning of a political party before the court in the future. At the same time, consideration of the military and political situation and compliance with the guarantees of a fair trial should be noted as a necessary condition for consideration of the specified cases; expansion of the list of entities that will have the right to initiate the procedure of banning the activity of a political party.

Ефективність заборони діяльності проросійських політичних партій: досвід та реалії

The legal regulation of the prohibition of political parties in Ukraine and foreign countries in the article is examined. The key issue in the issue of banning political parties is the mechanism of this ban and its effectiveness in protecting fundamental human rights, national security of Ukraine and protection of the democratic constitutional order. Since information security is an important front line, Ukraine is defending its independence and democracy in this area. In this regard, it is of particular relevance to improve national legislation and state policy in the field of information space protection and restriction of the activities of pro-Russian political parties. It is emphasized that the right to freedom of association of citizens into political parties is a reflection of the pluralistic nature of a democratic political regime. The activities of political parties allow for the real influence of various social groups on the political life of the State. At the same time, the need to ensure this pluralism and other constitutional values requires the legislator to introduce special mechanisms to protect the democratic constitutional order, in particular, by establishing special restrictions on the activities of public associations. The key issue in the prohibition of political parties is the mechanism of this prohibition and its effectiveness in protecting fundamental human rights, national security of Ukraine and protection of the democratic constitutional order. The main models of banning political parties are analyzed. The practice of banning political parties in Ukraine since 2014 in the context of Russia's hybrid aggression against Ukraine is considered. A mechanism for improving the legal regulation of the ban on the activities of pro-Russian political parties in Ukraine is proposed based on the experience of countries with stable democracies and taking into account the challenges facing Ukraine's national security today.

Local Self-Government as the Factor of Restoration of the Ukrainian Economy

The purpose of the article is to identify the leading factors for the recovery of the Ukrainian economy, using the resources of local government. Research methodology includes: historical, system-structural and comparative studies (to understand the successful experience of developing economically selfsufficient local self-government); monographic analysis (when studying the leading socio-economic factors in the formation of effective local and territorial communities); statistical and economic analysis (when assessing the potential of local communities in the economic processes of the country). Scientific novelty. It has been revealed that in the modern world the formation of economically self-sufficient local communities is an extremely complex and longterm process, which depends not only on the local community, local government, but also on the balanced policy of the central authorities. Unlike most countries in the world, Ukraine has gone through a difficult path of reforms to form effective, economically self-sufficient territorial communities. It is proved that a number of laws, legislative initiatives and regulations in Ukraine significantly oppress local self-government; and it is also noted that political structures and parties in Ukraine, working in local governments, do not always contribute to the development of territorial communities. It is proposed to carry out appropriate comprehensive reforms: 1) to strengthen the transparency, responsibility and institutional capacity of state authorities and local self-government in their accountability to society; 2) intensify the reform of judicial, law enforcement and regulatory bodies of state power, local self-government, carry out maximum digitalization, introduce a system of efficiency and reduce discretion; 3) to carry out real deoligarchization and bring big business to the values of social responsibility in Ukrainian society; 4) to form measures to transfer the economy and society to greater innovation and creative values; 5) launch infrastructure reform; 6) reform social and family values. Conclusions. The communities that received resources and great powers basically did not realize their economic potential. The asymmetry of the economic development of the regions of Ukraine over the past 9-10 years has only intensified. The reason is a significant number of laws and regulations that are contrary to the interests or do not allow to reveal the potential of local communities. Such problems can be resolved at the legislative level, taking into account the needs of local communities. In addition, opacity, corruption, and inconsistency in the actions of local and state authorities are often manifested; therefore, the author’s proposals for reform (6 points) are the key to the formation of economically successful and self-sufficient communities. Key words: local communities, local self-government, local self-government economy, regional economy, organization of local self-government in the global economy.

Language as a political manipulation tool

Unfortunately, human intelligence is increasingly becoming militant and destructive. A clear evidence is the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, centuries of enslavement of the Ukrainian people, destruction of Ukrainian culture and language. In fact, the current tragic events of the latest hybrid war exposed ethnocide and linguicide against Ukrainians. The aim of the article is to analyse the use of language as a manipulation tool for the realization of fundamental political interests. Research methods: historical method, content analysis, statistical analysis. The results of the study show that the hegemonic policy of the current Russian government is characterized by the aggressive hybrid war against Ukraine, which actively involves various manipulation tools, in particular language, in order to justify the occupation, violent means of domination and methods of control over its former colonies, in order to appropriate all the resources of the enslaved countries and peoples, in order to maintain the status of a global leader and dominate the world. Further research may focus on analysing the manifestations of the use of language as a manipulation tool by pro-Russian parties in Ukraine and other countries.

The administrative-procedural component of banning a political party in Ukraine

The article is devoted to the study of the issue of the administrative-procedural component of the ban on political parties in Ukraine. The full-scale invasion of Russia became the point of extremum for intensifying measures to ensure the state and national security of Ukraine, including by disabling the activities of pro-Russian political forces. The practice of banning the functioning and activities of political parties is one of the mechanisms for protecting sovereignty and traditionally belongs to the toolkit of militant democracy.
 It was emphasized that the legal basis of the procedure for banning political parties was formed relatively recently and under the influence of martial law (Law of Ukraine No. 2243-IX dated 03.05.2022 «On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Banning of Political Parties»).
 It is summarized that due to the great political and social significance that administrative cases on the banning of a political party belong to the jurisdiction of the appellate administrative court in the appellate district, which includes the city of Kyiv.
 It was established that currently the legal nature of the procedure under consideration remains ambiguous in many respects, in particular, in terms of the grounds for opening proceedings and filing an administrative lawsuit to ban a political party, as well as the mechanisms of judicial review and the powers of the court when deciding such a case (regarding the ban and transfer of party property owned by the state). Administrative proceedings regarding the banning of a political party are specific and characterized by a number of various differences compared to the general principles of administrative proceedings in court. Prohibition of a political party during a court proceeding is a public process with the mandatory involvement of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine in the legalization of this administrative proceeding.

SAFETY AND PROTECTION OF UNACCOMPANIED AND SEPARATED CHILDRENFLEEING FROM WAR IN UKRAINE (CASE OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA)

The article presents an analysis of the actions taken by the authorities of the Republic of Moldova to ensure the safety and protection of unaccompanied children and children taken by third parties from Ukraine as a result of the war. It is based on assessing existing services in Moldova for refugee children from Ukraine and highlighting the strengths and weaknesses in ensuring their protection. The research program included: (i) desk analysis of statistical data and recent reports regarding the situation of people displaced from Ukraine in the Republic of Moldova, with an emphasis on knowing the situation of unaccompanied children and those accompanied by third parties; (ii) carrying out eight in-depth individual interviews with representatives of international organizations, different social service providers, representatives of central and local authorities. The research data presents the involvement of government authorities in the development of the legal framework for the protection of unaccompanied or accompanied children by third parties in Ukraine, following the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, along with the contribution of central and local authorities, international organizations and civil society to the development of services for children-refugees at border crossing points, in refugee placement centers and communities.

President Putin: A holy mad man or a brave but trapped chicken in Ukraine?

To choose an effective strategy to stop Putin and Russia’s aggressive ambitions in Ukraine and in wider Eastern Europe, Western political and military leaders need to understand his modus operandi and strategic logic. This article focuses on the benefits of game theory in explaining the behavior of the warring parties in Ukraine. It argues that, from an initial “mad man” or a game of chicken strategy chosen by Putin, he has been forced to gradually shift toward a less promising dollar auction model. If the mad man strategy was meant to deter opposing powers from testing Putin’s limits, now the dominant game has locked Putin into a self-driven game with ever higher bids and complications for any exit. For an effective response from the West, the key elements are the Ukrainian will to fight but also the brinkmanship of the West in choosing the right moment to force the Kremlin out of the game.

TRUST IN POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE CONTEXT OF THEIR INFLUENCE ON POLITICAL PROCESSES IN UKRAINE

The article analyzes sociological surveys on trust in political parties in Ukraine in 2019-2021 in the context of their ability to influence political processes in Ukraine. It was found that the balance of trust / distrust during the study period was negative (below -50%). There were also regional features of trust in parliamentary parties based on their ideological declarations and foreign policy guidelines. The analyzed expectations of the society from political parties give grounds to assert that the majority of voters are alienated from political parties, and their expectations from parties are closely related to expectations from the government as a whole. The current level of trust and expectations do not contribute to the development of sustainable and mass political parties, which can be one of the social lifts within the political system and effectively mobilize supporters for public action. Instead, such quantitative and qualitative indicators of trust contribute to the parties' use of nontransparent methods of influence and their dependence on big business, including the «oligarchs».

Membership in Ukraine’s political parties: membership crisis or crisis of the party model?

The characteristics of political parties of Ukraine and democratic countries in relation to the level of membership have been considered; its low level has been stated. In Ukraine, the formation of political parties was carried out in accordance with the model of “mass political party”, formulated by M. Duverger. Accordingly, regulations on political parties clearly define the requirements for formal membership. The main versions of the information on the number of members of political parties in Ukraine have been analyzed; its secrecy and impossibility of verification have been emphasized. On the basis of interviews with party activists of Lviv region, the parameters of membership in regional party branches have been determined. The influence of a number of factors on the involvement of non-party employees in party organizations has been clarified and their role in the work of party structures has been outlined. It has been proved that the low level of membership in regional centers is evidence of the crisis of the mass party model. It has been also proposed to consider as an indicator of this crisis the attempts to form a network party model by a number of newly created parties in Ukraine.

Political party as a derivative of the TV show in contemporary Ukraine: cultural technology of image versus ideology

The author analyzed the TV show "Servant of the People" and how it influenced the functioning process of political parties in Ukraine through the prism of the correlation of ideological and technological practices in the TV show. The methodology of the study is based not on the analysis of the content of political programs and organizations, but on the logic of hierarchies and transformations of cultural practices. The main marker of the dominance of technology over ideology in the 2019 presidential elections in Ukraine was the fact that a political party is created with the same name after it became clear that the success of the show ensured the victory of the protagonist's representative in the elections. Mass media is a form of cultural power of an ever-expanding group of educated people. It combines the elements of ideology and technology of image. The historical dynamics of the mass media demonstrates several historical stages in this process. The first stage is the print media: the text-centrism of this media creates an ideological dominant for unifying into large enough groups of people at the cost of the regulative idea of rational discourse. The decentralization of political positions, represented as variety of political parties, is carried out as rational criticism. The second stage is optical media (cinema and television): the circulation of images from this period creates a positive emotional connection to the political leader beyond the mediations of the rational bureaucracy. The dramaturgical style of media criticism does not assume an active position of a rational subject, but a passive mass viewer, who expresses an evaluative position on professionally produced images, including images of the political sphere. The technology of image production dominates the ideological narrative. The third stage is the reproduction of optical media in Internet practices. Here the simplification of production and circulation, of discourse and image, leads to a new level of immediacy in the connection between the political leader and his voters, on the one hand. On the other hand, the political, as well as other elite spheres, are beginning to lose their privileged status in the democratization of cultural capital production. Internet media suggest a de-differentiation of image and discourse, ideology and technology of image. There is a certain imbalance towards the production of images above narrative.

National Communist Parties In Ukraine: Ukrainian Historiography

The article attempts to systematize the works of Ukrainian historians devoted to the National Communist Parties of Ukraine. The author shows the peculiarities of perception by Ukrainian researchers of the Ukrainian Communist Party (borotbists) and the Ukrainian Communist Party (Ukapists), depending on their views and the time of writing. There are three stages in the extensive Ukrainian historiography on this issue. The first works were written by contemporaries of these events and, in turn, are divided into works created by historians in exile and studies by historians — supporters of the Soviet government. The second stage of historiography was marked by the unification of the picture of the revolutionary past within the framework of the official Soviet doctrine. The third stage of historiography — the period of independence of Ukraine — is characterized by increased interest in the topic and positive assessments of the National Communist parties.

Electoral Performance of New Political Parties in Ukraine: The Context of Electoral Volatility at the Parliamentary Level (1998–2019)

This article is devoted to study and comparative analysis of the features and levels of support for new political parties during parliamentary elections in Ukraine, in particular the period 1998–2019. With this in mind, mainly based on the calculations of the indices of overall electoral volatility, intra-system electoral volatility and extra-system electoral volatility, we analyze the parameters of changes in electoral support (by voters) for political parties, in particular new ones, during the 1998–2019 parliamentary elections in Ukraine. In addition, we correlate overall, intra-system and extra-system electoral volatility, and present the correlation of overall electoral volatility in the sample of all political parties as the subjects of electoral processes in Ukraine and political parties elected to the national parliament (the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine). As a result, the study outlines two clusters of extra-system electoral volatility, which show the highest level of similarity, and calculates the dependence of the level of electoral volatility and stability of the party system in Ukraine. With this background, we conclude that electoral volatility in Ukraine is largely determined by the effect of party affiliation or desire to belong to the government or opposition, and is regulated by the special context of identity politics in this country.

State control over the financial statements of political parties: a comparative study

The article examines the constitutional and legal aspects of state control over financial statements in Ukraine and individual EU countries. It is stated that state control over financial statements is one of the objects of general control over the financing of political parties. The legal framework for reporting financial assets, income, expenses and liabilities is examined. Provisions of Art. 17 of the Law of Ukraine "On Political Parties in Ukraine" determines the general structure and content of the financial report, the frequency of reporting and the general features of the procedure for its submission. The standard form, procedure for compiling and submitting a report of a political party on property, income, expenses and liabilities of a financial nature are regulated by bylaw, namely acts approved by decisions of the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption. Despite the external legal certainty in this area, there is a gap between the norms of the Laws of Ukraine "On Political Parties in Ukraine" and "On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Preventing and Combating Political Corruption" of April 5, 2001 № 2365, which provide the opposite according to the content of the norm on the manner and form of the report of a political party on property, income, expenses and liabilities of a financial nature.
 A comparative analysis of financial reporting legislation in the Republic of Poland, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of Latvia is conducted. Unlike in Ukraine, where political parties are required to report quarterly, in these countries, as a general rule, political parties submit financial statements annually. Another feature of the special laws on political parties in these countries is that the report must also indicate the number of party members who are required to pay dues (in Germany) or a separate report on registration and membership dues (in Latvia). Among other things, the experience of Latvia in creating an online database of donations, access to which is open, is interesting.
 As a result of the comparative study, proposals and recommendations for improving the quality of the functioning of the mechanism of state control over the financial statements of political parties were synthesized.

LEGAL STATUS OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN UKRAINE

The article is devoted to the issues of the legal status of political parties in Ukraine, as a necessary mechanism for regulating their activities. The need for a comprehensive study of the features of the legal status of political parties in Ukraine is due to the need for knowledge about the main legislative acts that regulate their activities, as well as the functioning of the political and party systems of Ukraine. Undoubtedly, this issue is one of the most relevant for this period of time, since the issues that are explored in this article are the main ones in the implementation of the domestic and foreign policy of the state, and, accordingly, affect the life of citizens. The legal framework for the functioning of political parties and the party system in Ukraine is not perfect today, but there is some progress in this direction through the use of foreign experience. The imperfection of the legal framework for the functioning of political parties in Ukraine and the party system of Ukraine in general can be explained by certain specifics of our state. It consists in the fact that for seventy years Ukraine has been within the framework of a oneparty totalitarian system. Under such conditions, there can be no question of any legal basis for regulating the activities of political parties. because the Constitution of the Soviet Union officially enshrined that the ruling Communist Party was the only one in the country. Prior to the establishment of Soviet rule for three years, there were some steps towards advancing Ukraine's party system, but they were all offset by the fact that Ukraine lost its independence and found itself under the rule of the northern neighbor's dictatorship for 70 years. It is clear that during this short period there was no question of any legal aspect, only political. As can be seen from the concrete facts, with the gaining of independence in 1991, no great strides were made in this important issue. The Constitution of Ukraine was adopted only for 5 years of independence, and a separate law regulating the activities of political parties in Ukraine was adopted only in 2001, ie 10 years after independence. Some slow steps towards progress have been made since 2014, but much remains to be done to say that Ukraine's legal framework for regulating political parties is the same as Europe's.

Far-right Radicalism in Ukraine in Past and Present

The article explores the ideological origins of Ukrainian radical nationalism, the formation and evolution of far-right political forces in post-Communist Ukraine, and the ideology of contemporary radical right-wing Ukrainian parties. Ukrainian far-right nationalism originated in the 1920s-30s. Its political embodiment was the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) which operated in Eastern Poland. Ideological foundation of the OUN was the concept of integral nationalism elaborated by Dmytro Dontsov. The OUN proclaimed the creation of Ukrainian sovereign state as its most important goal. The characteristic features of the ideology of Ukrainian radical far-right nationalism of that era were the priority of the interests of the Ukrainian nation, Russophobia, anti-communism, anti-liberalism, and the cult of power. Modern Ukrainian radical nationalists have adopted many of these concepts. In the 1990s, a number of extreme right-wing organizations emerged in Ukraine that declared themselves heirs of the traditions of Ukrainian nationalists of the first half of the XX th century. Some of the newly created parties tend towards integral nationalism, while others tend towards social nationalism, which combines ethnic nationalism with the idea of social justice. At the same time, all Ukrainian radical nationalists are characterized by an ethnic interpretation of the nation, a desire to create a mono-ethnic Ukrainian state, a negative attitude towards Russia and Russians, anti-communism, and commitment to the “third way” in economy. Critical of European liberal values, the Ukrainian far-right radicals are nonetheless in favor of Ukraine joining the EU and NATO, hoping that Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration will distance it from Russia. Ukrainian radical nationalists actively participated in Euromaidan 2013-2014 and the overthrow of Victor Yanukovych’s regime. However, they have never (with the exception of the 2012 parliamentary elections) achieved any significant success in the elections to the Verkhovna Rada. Only a part of the population of Galicia votes for them. At the same time, some ideas previously put forward by the Ukrainian far right have in recent years to a certain extent entered the ideological baggage of respectable pro-European right-wing parties in Ukraine. Thus, the ideological and political influence of the Ukrainian far-right nationalists is more significant than it would be possible to assume based only on their electoral support.

Political parties and freedom of assosiation: problems of the Ukrainian constitutional terminology

The content of the constitutional right to freedom of association in political parties in Ukraine is one of the elementsof this subjective right. Traditionally, the structure of any subjective right is analyzed in the composition of the subjectsof this right, its object (objects), as well as the content, and constitutional subjective rights are not an exception to thisrule. It should be emphasized that this approach is fully justified and should be followed. In studying the content of theconstitutional right to freedom of association in political parties in Ukraine, the question of distinguishing between theconcepts of “union” and “association” arises.The relevance of the research topic is that European integration processes are currently underway in Ukraine,which provide for the harmonization of national legislation with human rights standards adopted in the EU. It is withinthese processes that the author analyzes and substantiates the need to move to a wider application of the concept of"association" in national legislation and Ukrainian legal literature.So far, experts in constitutional law have not analyzed the issue of distinguishing between the concepts of “union”and “association” in the context of the study of the right to freedom of association in political parties in Ukraine. Inthis regard, in writing the article used works devoted mainly to general issues of the theory of state and law (primarilythe development of professors Krestovskaya, Matveeva), as well as general issues of constitutional law in terms ofsubjective rights (primarily developed by professors Shapoval, Mishyna). We should also take into the account thedissertation for the degree of Candidate of Law, devoted to the constitutional right to unite in political parties, that wassubmitted by A.M. Moiseev on the materials of foreign law and case law.The author argues that the need to distinguish between the concepts of “union” and “association” in relation to theconstitutional right to freedom of association in political parties in Ukraine.The author recommends to abandon the use of the concept of “association of citizens” in favor of the concept of“association” in Art. 36-37 of the Constitution of Ukraine and bring other laws and bylaws in line with the Constitutionof Ukraine, first of all – the Law “On Political Parties in Ukraine”, where in Art. 2 “The concept of a political party”gives this definition. Prospects for further research are to use the same thesaurus used by foreign scholars working inEU countries when studying the right to freedom of association in political parties in Ukraine

Local elections as the development factor of regional political parties in Ukraine

Local elections as the development factor of regional political parties in Ukraine