National Elections of governors in Context of Transformation of Federal Relations in Post-Soviet Russia (Early 1990s — Mid-2000s)

Abstract

The features of the formation and conduct of direct nation-wide elections of senior officials (governors, heads of administrations, presidents) of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the reasons for their temporary cancellation are considered. The relevance of the study is due to the significant influence of gubernatorial election campaigns (however, as well as the subsequent abolition of electivity) on the formation of the domestic political system, new democratic institutions and federal relations in Russia at the turn of 1990—2000. In preparing the article, a large array of regulatory and judicial documents and statistical data was used, which makes it possible to comprehensively characterize the process of applying the provisions of the electoral legislation and the trends in the development of the electoral system. It was found that the regions were more willing to defend the election of governors, while the federal center, declaring its commitment to democratic reforms, made efforts to slow down the decentralization of state power. The transition to widespread direct elections in the second half of the 1990s, in the face of the weakness of the central state apparatus, contributed to the strengthening of the political positions of regional leaders. The conclusion is substantiated that the reforms of the federal center in the first half of the 2000s, aimed at strengthening the “vertical of power”, strengthening federal control, compromising the institution of gubernatorial elections with falsifications and the use of aggressive political technologies led to a relatively quick cancellation of popular elections, which was met with restraint by the elites and the population.