The Irkutsk region topped the ranking of the dirtiest elections
The Irkutsk region topped the ranking of the dirtiest election campaigns during the current elections in Russia.
Such data was presented by experts from the Center for Regional Policy Development (CRDP), after analyzing the situation in the regions of the Russian Federation, as a result of which they compiled the TOP-3 “most scandalous” campaigns.
As the director of the CRRP, political scientist Ilya Grashchenkov notes, the three most scandalous campaigns take place in elections at different levels: gubernatorial, city and by-elections to the State Duma. All of them are characterized by the use of “black technologies” and administrative pressure directed against the main opposition candidates, primarily the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.
1st place – Irkutsk region. The campaign was initially of a provocative nature, since in order to weaken the candidate from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Shchapov, a “double” candidate from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Gennady Shchadov, was nominated.
Apparently, the headquarters of the rival communist, acting Irkutsk region Igor Kobzev, were afraid of Shchapov’s too high rating, so by the end of the campaign they launched a real “black PR campaign” against him.
The most provocative were billboards with the image of Shchapov and inscriptions in Chinese. As an explanation for this story, a video was published online in which the Communist Party of the Russian Federation allegedly agreed with China to sell part of Lake Baikal for development.
Such a hoax did not go unnoticed in the PRC, and now Russia may have to explain itself to its colleagues about the manipulation of the “Chinese threat.”
In addition to “dirty” political technologies, Igor Kobzev’s headquarters was noted for the massive use of administrative resources, including in relation to independent media.
2nd place – Ulyanovsk region. The campaign for elections to the Ulyanovsk City Council consists of a series of scandals. Firstly, the spoiler party “Communists of Russia” removed some of the candidates from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation from the elections, thereby depriving the party of the opportunity to take a majority in the Duma. Many have now been reinstated by the Supreme Court, but their names are not yet on the ballot.
Secondly, a strange movement “Against Everyone” has unfolded in the region, which convinces residents that they are “blacks”, but basically works in the same way against the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. As a result, the representative of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Alexei Kurinny, in order to attract attention to the problem, had to be on duty in the square around the clock, organizing a round-the-clock reception of citizens, since public events are prohibited due to the coronavirus. The culmination of the campaign was a fight in the City Duma between representatives of United Russia and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.
3rd place – Yaroslavl region. The by-elections to the State Duma in the Yaroslavl single-mandate constituency turned out to be unexpectedly competitive. The main struggle was between Olympic hockey champion United Russia Andrei Kovalenko, who received the nickname “Russian Tank,” and Yaroslavl ex-governor Anatoly Lisitsyn, who replaced “United Russia” with “A Just Russia.”
Lisitsyn is supported by some representatives of the regional elites who are dissatisfied with the current governor Mironov.
There are many scandals surrounding Kovalenko’s campaign, his rivals complain that all the airtime is filled with his participation, and his competitors are not allowed to meet with voters because of the coronavirus.
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