The suffrage is ... The Constitution of the Russian Federation. The Suffrage in the Russian Federation

Citizens of the Russian Federation are endowed with a large number of rights regarding the choice of government bodies, the formation of the structure of local government structures and even the introduction of changes to the Constitution of the country. From the point of view of the content of the laws regulating elections in Russia, our country is one of the most democratic in the world. Of course, we are far from Switzerland with its direct democracy, but the state gives the Russians all the resources for a full-fledged people's government of the country.

What is the right to vote?

The voting right is a system of laws regulating how elections should be held at various levels of government, or as such, the right of citizens of a country or city to participate in the election process as a voter or as a candidate. In both respects, the suffrage may concern, for example, elections to the State Duma, presidential elections in Russia, regional and municipal leaders.

The interpretation of the term "suffrage", associated with the participation of citizens in elections, implies its passive form and active. The first is when a person becomes a candidate for a certain managerial or political position. The second is when he chooses himself. Sometimes such a classification is called division by objective law, when a person chooses someone, and subjective when he becomes a candidate. A key feature of any right is the existence of restrictions for some individuals and the absence of such restrictions for others. So in the case of the right to vote: not all citizens and not all individuals who have physical access to elections are given the opportunity to vote or to be candidates.

The Fundamentals of Electoral Law in Russia

The heads of municipalities, subjects of the federation, deputies of the Soviets and the State Duma, mayors, the president of Russia are all chosen (if any federal and regional laws, in the absence of contradictions with other acts, allow otherwise) by citizens on the basis of universal, equal and free elections, Secrets of voting. The electoral law in the Russian Federation is based on specific legislation, which is divided into several levels. These are federal laws (FZ) on the electoral law, regional and municipal acts.

Elections in Russia are universal, that is, every citizen has the right to elect and be elected. There is a certain qualification, but it has quite a reasonable basis: only adults (over 18) can vote (that is, use active or subjective suffrage), be candidates (use passive or objective right) - persons who turned 21. Laws are not allowed to vote and be elected to citizens recognized as legally incapacitated, and also serving sentences in places of deprivation of liberty. The universality of law in Russia means that a citizen who has been refused access to the election by the competent authorities may appeal this in court and expect to receive a reply within two days.

The main sources of suffrage in Russia

The suffrage is a phenomenon based on laws. The key for Russia are the following. Firstly, it is the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the main law of the country. Secondly, it is the Federal Law "On the Referendum," which regulates the mechanisms of nationwide expression of will on issues related to the status of the whole country. Thirdly, these are federal laws that regulate elections to government bodies, as well as clarify the key provisions of the electoral rights of Russian citizens. Among these are the federal law "On Elections of the President", "On Ensuring the Constitutional Rights of Citizens of the Russian Federation to Elect and Be Elected to Local Self-Government Bodies". Fourth, the sources of the electoral law in Russia include presidential decrees, local acts of executive persons, heads of regional authorities and municipalities. Sometimes the implementation of the right to vote becomes the prerogative of the State Duma and the Central Election Commission, which, if necessary, take out actual decisions.

The electoral rights of Russians

Guarantees of the electoral rights of citizens in modern states acquire the character of a system controlled by a number of specific laws. They determine the order in accordance with which there is a choice of officials or political organizations to represent the interests of citizens in various government bodies. There is a separate law regulating these democratic procedures - the Federal Law "On Basic Guarantees of Electoral Rights and the Right to Participate in the Referendum of Citizens of the Russian Federation."

Among the most important, practically meaningful and necessary guarantees for citizens, lawyers note the following. First, these are political guarantees. They are related to the diversity of ideologies, the equality of people united by the commonality of interests before the law, the freedom of agitation, the involvement of independent observers. Secondly, these are material guarantees of electoral rights: the costs of holding elections of different levels are assigned to the budget of the country, region or municipality. Third, these are legal safeguards designed to ensure the legitimacy of elections. Citizens in accordance with these guarantees may appeal the actions of various officials involved in organizing voting and counting results.

Types of electoral systems in Russia

The suffrage is a kind of mechanism. The stability of his work implies adherence to certain standards. Among these, for example, the format of electoral systems. In Russia, the two are majority and proportional. Within the framework of the first elections are held in single-mandate or multi-mandate districts. Voting results are calculated on the basis of the majority of votes cast for a candidate or candidates. An absolute majority rule can be applied when, for a victory, the candidate needs to collect more than 50% of the votes, or relative, when the winner is the one who gets at least one vote more than any of the competitors.

Proportional format is when voters vote for lists of candidates formed by political associations (parties or blocs). The majority system is characteristic for the election of the Russian president, the heads of the subjects of the federation, mayors. A proportional format is used in elections to the State Duma or local representative bodies of power. However, in some regions there are precedents for electing deputies to the bodies of local self-government and the majority system.

Specific formats of electoral systems are established by laws of different levels. If we are talking about the election of the president or deputies of the State Duma, then the norms of the federal level are applied. In turn, when elections are held in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, local laws come to the fore in the municipalities, but only if they do not contradict federal laws and the Constitution of the country. Any laws concerning the regulation of election procedures must comply with the Federal Law "On Basic Guarantees of Electoral Rights", as discussed above.

Who and How to Change the Constitution

As it was said above, the Constitution of the Russian Federation is the main law of the country. All inferiors have to comply with it. The Constitution can be partially revised (only in 1, 2, and 9 chapters), it can be amended (from chapters 3-8).

Who is empowered to submit proposals for amendments to the text of the Constitution or to revise its individual parts? This right has many authorities: the president, the State Duma, the Federation Council, the Government of Russia, representative bodies of the regions. The specific course of the revision of the parts of the Constitution will depend on which authority has taken the initiative. Fact: citizens themselves can directly participate in changing the Constitution of the country.

For example, if more than 60% of the votes of the members of the Federation Council and State Duma deputies are in favor of revising the provisions of the Constitution, then immediately the Constitutional Assembly is convened. Its participants can take one of two decisions: leave the main law of the country unchanged or develop a new project. And here, citizens of Russia can join the process. If two-thirds of the composition of the Constitutional Assembly can not decide on a solution, then it is proposed to do it to the Russians. For the adoption of a new draft Constitution, more than half of the citizens should vote "for", and turnout exceeded 50%. The right to vote in the Russian Federation is also the ability of citizens to adopt or change the basic law.

Another example is the consideration of the bill on the introduction of amendments to the Constitution into chapters 3 to 8 of the State Duma. This happens in three readings, which is very similar to the procedure for enacting federal laws. Approve the amendment should not less than two-thirds of the deputies. After three readings, the bill goes to the Council of Federation for discussion and three-fourths of the members should vote "for" it. If this happens, then the bill is published in official publications, and citizens can familiarize with it. At the same time, he is sent to the representative bodies of the subjects of the Federation. In order for the bill to become a full-fledged law, two-thirds of the regional authorities should approve it. If this also happens, the act is sent for signing to the president of Russia.

Elections to the State Duma

The Russian system of suffrage implies several different types of elections. One of them is the election of deputies of the lower house of the Russian Parliament (State Duma). This procedure is regulated by the Federal Law "On Elections of Deputies". According to this act, State Duma deputies are elected by citizens with observance of secret voting. In the lower house of Parliament, 450 deputies are always elected. The choice is made at the federal level in proportion to the votes cast for the lists of party candidates. That is, you can not vote for a specific person, but only for the political association in which he is registered. Having received a certain percentage of votes, the party receives a proportional number of seats in the State Duma from 450.

Citizens of Russia who are 18 years old can elect deputies. Also, adult Russians can participate in the formation of party lists of candidates, agitate, observe how elections are going, how electoral commissions work (including monitoring the counting of results). Citizens, who turned 21, can themselves try themselves as candidates for elections to the State Duma.

Elections of deputies of the lower chamber of the Parliament are appointed by the president of the country. The head of state should give a good no later than 90 days before the voting date (the first Sunday of the month when the term of the State Duma of the current convocation expired).

The most important if not the key role in the election of State Duma deputies is played by election commissions. They implement the voting on local sites - in towns and villages. During elections to the State Duma, any party may involve its representatives in election commissions. There are three of them: a member of the commission with the casting vote, a person authorized to give an advisory vote, an observer. Each of them is endowed with a certain range of functions. The rights of a member of an election commission are fixed by law. Let's see what an observer can do, for example. First, he follows the correctness of the counting of votes. Secondly, he is entitled to consider ballots for their integrity, the correctness of the "for" or "against" marks. He can observe the correctness of drawing up a protocol reflecting the results of voting, get acquainted with other documents related to the elections.

What is direct democracy?

There is such a phenomenon - direct suffrage. It is a procedure when the laws are adopted not by a representative body (the Council or the Duma), but by the people themselves of the country or political education. The methods here can be different: congresses, forums, etc. Historically, direct democracy preceded a representative democracy. This form of government was practiced in the times of ancient civilizations, in the early Middle Ages (including in Russia as a people's veche).

Right now, direct democracy exists only at the level of small collectives (for example, when choosing the elder in a university group). There are elements of direct popular government and in some municipalities, for example, in Israeli kibbutzim, in the Swiss cantons (plus within the framework of the national referendums held in Switzerland).

Example of direct democracy in Switzerland

Consider the Swiss model of direct democracy. Here is an example when the electoral right guaranteed by the institutions of direct democracy is an instrument of influence on national politics. Recently, a referendum was held in the country, where the issue of toughening immigration policy was decided. 78.8% of Swiss voted for adopting stricter laws. As a result, in the fall of 2015, potential migrants will find it more difficult to naturalize in this European country: for example, special camps will be established to check the identity of refugees. This precedent, according to a number of analysts, showed the rest of the world how effective and close to the people, its moods are direct democracy, and also how broad the citizens' voting rights can be.

The history of the Swiss democracy, according to most historians, takes counts from the 16th century. Then came the self-government bodies called "landsgeminde", which controlled the life of local communities. Only men with the right to carry weapons were allowed to vote. The next step towards the emergence of a direct Swiss democracy is the first referendum held in May 1802. Then the constitution of the Helvetic Republic was approved by popular vote.

Now, any citizen of Switzerland can, firstly, vote, and secondly - initiate a national discussion of a bill, amend the current acts, codes or even the Constitution of the country. True, it will be necessary to collect a considerable number of signatures in order for the initiative to be registered. The exact number depends on the type of referendum. In Switzerland, there are two of them - optional (it needs 50,000 signatures) and mandatory (100,000 signatures).

This difference is simply explained: an optional referendum is usually a process against a law passed by parliamentary means, that is, certain conditions must arise for the initiation of an optional referendum, and a mandatory referendum is a "clean slate" process for which special conditions are not required.

Elections of the President of Russia

Russia, according to many experts - the presidential republic. That is, the position of the head of state here is not nominal (as, for example, in Germany), the president de jure and de facto concentrates huge powers in his hands, and therefore Russian electoral law gives the procedure for electing the head of state a number of special features that distinguish this process From the election, say, of the State Duma deputies.

The law on elections says that a citizen under the age of 35 can not become a Russian president (in the case of elections to the State Duma, the age limit is 21 years). This is due to the special role and high responsibility of the elected head of state. Also, the candidate for the post of president of Russia must live at least ten years in his country. Regarding this qualification, there are two interpretations. Some lawyers are sure that ten years of residence can be obtained by summing up different periods of stay in Russia. Others believe that one must live uninterruptedly.

If in the elections to the State Duma the same party can occupy at least 450 seats as many times as you like, then the president of Russia can only become twice in a row. There is an opinion that a limited number of reelections of the head of state can prevent authoritarianism. The change of personalities in the office of the president, as some political analysts believe, is a condition for peaceful, lawful behavior of the opposition, which always has a chance to put its candidate in the election and win. Otherwise, the opposition can arrange a coup d'état. The Russian Constitution allows one and the same person to hold the presidential post three times, four times and more times, but not twice in a row.

Elections of the head of the Russian state are appointed by the Federation Council not later than 120 days before the voting date. As well as in the case of the election of State Duma deputies, voting takes place on the first Sunday of the month in which the term of office of the president expires. By the way, the Federation Council may not appoint elections, but they will be held on the second or third Sunday of the month in which citizens elected the president last time.

Elections of the head of state in Russia can be recognized as failed in several cases. First, if less than half of the voters came to the polling stations. Secondly, if the Central Election Commission revealed a large percentage of violations in the counting of votes. Thirdly, the elections are canceled if more than 25% of polling stations are not valid.

The Russian president can be elected in the first round if he collects more than 50% of the votes. If this does not happen, then a second round is appointed, in which it is enough to collect a simple majority of votes.