Elections in the DPR: the winners are already known. Who are they?
Sergei Buntovsky, writer, historian, activist of the Russian Bloc party, Donetsk
There is less than a month left before the elections in Donbass, and we can already say that they will be without sensations. A special feature of this vote will be that the age of voters has been reduced to 16 years, which is apparently done to increase turnout, which will be low both because of the danger of coming under fire and because most of the candidates are completely unfamiliar to Donetsk residents
Seven people initially planned to compete for the post of head of the republic, but three of them were unable to collect enough signatures to participate in the elections, and one himself withdrew his candidacy. So the ballot papers will contain the names of three contenders: the current Prime Minister Alexander Zakharchenko, the legendary Donetsk coach Yuri Sivokonenko and businessman Alexander Kofman, better known as an ally of deputy Oleg Tsarev in the South-East organization. However, Zakharchenko is considered the clear favorite, and few doubt his victory.
If we talk about elections to the parliament of the Donetsk People's Republic, then, undoubtedly, the leadership in the number of deputies will belong to the public organization "Donetsk Republic", the most famous candidates of which are the current Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Purgin and the former chairman of the presidium of the Supreme Council of the DPR Denis Pushilin. In addition, it is from this organization that the current head of the DPR, Alexander Zakharchenko, was nominated, and the head of the central election commission of the republic, Roman Lyagin, is an old acquaintance of Purgin. So, in addition to an attractive name and the ability to conduct broad campaigning, the “Donetsk Republic” also has serious administrative resources. All this allows activists of this political force to claim that they will receive at least 50 percent of the seats in the People's Council.
By the way, the “republic” has the longest and most eventful history of all organizations participating in elections. Its origins must be sought in the Donetsk camp of Yanukovych supporters, which emerged in the winter of 2004-05. Then Yushchenko’s opponents created several public organizations, which, after going through a series of transformations, eventually turned into the “Donetsk Republic.” Being extremely small in number, it nevertheless often found itself in the center of attention of the Ukrainian media. This was partly explained by the fact that its leader Alexander Tsurkan was mortally ill, and therefore was absolutely not afraid to enter into conflicts and provocations, as well as make statements on the verge of a foul. Either he announced the beginning of collecting signatures for the separation of the Donetsk region from Ukraine, or he announced the creation of the Donetsk Republican Army, which would begin the fight for the liberation of Donbass... It was then that the flag was invented, which today has become the symbol of the Donetsk People's Republic.
Orange media found in this organization a convenient target for exposing “enemies of Ukraine” and separatists. Fortunately, Tsurkan gave plenty of reasons for such accusations. Publications controlled by the Party of Regions, covering the actions of the Republicans, signaled to Kyiv: “Look, if you don’t find a compromise with the moderate opposition in the person of Yanukovych, you will have to deal with such radicals.” Additional advertising for the organization was made by President Yushchenko, who publicly demanded that the SBU put an end to the separatists. Accordingly, the Security Service began a “fight” with the activists of the republic, which only contributed to its promotion. As a result, by a court decision, the registration of the public organization “Donetsk Republic” was canceled, and it was dissolved, which did not stop its activists from organizing pickets and campaigning on the Internet for some time.
There is a version that at that time the “Donetsk Republic” was one of the projects of the Party of Regions, designed to take responsibility for those actions in which the leaders of the parliamentary party did not want to advertise their participation. After Tsurkan was unable to conduct political activities due to health reasons, and Yanukovych became president (and Donetsk politicians no longer needed to fuel the population’s dissatisfaction with the Ukrainian government), the activity of the “Donetsk Republic” sharply decreased. Moreover, her activists staged a showdown on the Internet, accusing each other of provocateurs and working for the SBU, which alienated many of her supporters.
However, the new leader of the organization, Andrei Purgin, managed to gather around him several activists who continued promoting their ideas on the Internet. At the same time, the Republicans began to establish contacts with representatives of Russian patriotic organizations, presenting themselves as the most consistent pro-Russian force in the region and mercilessly criticizing other pro-Russian organizations in Donbass, which they viewed as competitors. In the spring of 2013, the “Donetsk Republic” was able to hold its first high-profile street action after a long break, trying to disrupt a meeting of Donetsk bloggers with the American ambassador.
The events of the Russian Spring brought the “Donetsk Republic” back into politics, as Purgin immediately became involved in organizing protests. At the same time, his movement grew sharply in numbers due to new people and became one of the most radical forces in the region. Having gathered Donetsk residents ready for forceful action under its banner, the “Donetsk Republic” captured the regional council in April, which brought its leader to the role of one of the protest leaders, and then led him to the government of the new state. During the time that has passed since the beginning of the uprising, Purgin was able to agree on interaction both with Russian supporters of Novorossiya and with the Oplot battalion, which is today a real force and controls the situation in Donetsk. So, having won the elections, the Republicans (and those who stand behind them) will legally formalize their power in the region, which they took de facto in the spring by force.
In addition to the Donetsk Republic, the Free Donbass bloc, which includes activists of Pavel Gubarev’s Novorossiya party, which was not allowed to participate in the elections, will participate in the elections. However, even if they overcome the five percent threshold, their deputies will most likely find themselves in the minority and will not be able to fully influence the policy of the DPR.
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