Issue 3 (13) 2011

Aspects of electivity of heads of municipalities and the role of local population in local government

ASPECTS OF ELECTIVITY OF HEADS OF MUNICIPALITIES AND
THE ROLE OF LOCAL POPULATION IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT

A.V. Moskalev

Perm State National Research University
15, Bukirev st., Perm, 614990
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

L.I. Boosygin

Perm Branch of Nizhny Novgorod Academy of RIM of Russia
100, Acad. Vedeneeva st., Perm, 614038
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

In the article the issues of direct (non-representative) and indirect (representative) forms of democracy are analysed. Regarding the direct elections of the heads of municipalities as the main element of the rule of people, the authors analyse the regulations on this issue as well as the brightest periods of the electorate history of Russia over the last decade.  On the example of such big cities as Perm, Nizhny Novgorod, Ulyanovsk, Penza, Smolensk, Blagoveshchensk, Elista, Vladimir, Kurgan, Orenburg, Chelyabinsk, Izhevsk, Tyumen, Stavropol and others it is shown that the representative bodies managed to alter the Charter, that caused the change of priorities  in law in favour of indirect election. Admitting the alternative for the direct elections of the heads of municipalities, the authors insist on the necessity of additional guarantee of forms of direct expression of the will of population, as at the present time its participation is minimum. Citizens do not have a possibility to initiate and recall heads and deputies. The reason is the imposed additional restrictions in the law, i.e. the procedure of trial proof and change in the number of votes for decisions of the elective persons. Later there were 50% of the participants, now there is 50% of the list, which is almost impossible to implement. For the same reason it is very difficult to hold a local referendum on the initiative of the population. The tendency of transformation of the elections from the major system to the electoral system on the party lists, in fact, deprives the citizens of their right to nominate the candidates and vote for them leaving for them only the right to agree or disagree with the proposed candidates. The authors make an emphasis on the fact that local self government is, primarily, a right of municipal officials, not of the local population.  It is supposed that decentralization of the municipal power in the form that exists now is necessary as well as increase of decisive role of citizens in local affairs.

 Keywords: direct elections; indirect elections; head of municipality; representative bodies of local government; indirect representation; democracy; voter

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