Scorecard of the 2018 Russian Presidential Election

Настоящий материал (информация) произведен и (или) распространен иностранным агентом Общероссийским общественным движением в защиту прав избирателей «Голос», либо касается деятельности иностранного агента Общероссийского общественного движения в защиту прав избирателей «Голос».

News03 March 2018, 12:26

A scorecard called a “матрикул” in Russian (“matricul”) used to be a student's record book, in which tests and assignments were marked as “passed” or “failed.” With the aid of such a scorecard, students would know in advance which disciplines they would be evaluated on at the end of the semester, and anyone who saw the scorecard would immediately understand how diligent the student is.

The movement "Golos" prepared such a "матрикул" – or a "scorecard of the presidential election" – indicating the criteria for assessing the election’s compliance with the standards of free democratic elections. Each "passed" mark goes to the side of "free elections," and each "failed" mark to the side of "unfree elections." A scorecard will be filled in after the end of each stage of the election campaign, and each time "Golos" will explain its assessment in a report or statement.

Stage 1: Nomination of candidates

Analytical report "Nomination of candidates for the March 18, 2018 presidential election in the Russian Federation" (part 1 and part 2)
Emergency statement on illegal campaigning on TV channels during the presidential election in Russia in 2018 (rus)
Report on the media monitoring of the sixth week (January 22-28) of the election campaign for the March 18, 2018 presidential election in Russia (rus)
Investigation by "Golos": Tambov digital slavery of state employees and officials (rus)
"Golos" on the verification by the CEC of Russia of the facts of digital slavery of Tambov officials (rus)

Criteria	Passed/Failed
1. Free organization of party congresses for candidate nomination No attempts to disrupt or ban activities or detain participants; no provocations	Passed
2. Free assembly of initiative groups on nominating candidates No attempts to disrupt or ban activities, detain participants, or prosecute participants after meetings or provocations	Passed
3. Free registration of initiative groups and authorized candidates Registration of such groups and individuals without unreasonable refusals	Failed
4. Equality in the media in covering congresses and meetings of initiative groups for candidate nomination The media – primarily state and municipal – cover congresses and meetings of initiative groups for candidate nomination based on the principles of equality, giving none of the candidates a clear advantage over others	Failed
5. Efficiency of opening electoral accounts No artificial delay in opening electoral accounts of candidates	Passed
6. Independence and impartiality in the activities of election commissions Election commissions act independently, professionally, and objectively; no influence is exerted by outside officials on the actions of the commissions or the decisions they make	Failed
7. No pressure exerted on supporters of candidates Supporters of candidates are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, and local self-government, or from employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons; there are no obstacles in opening and running the headquarters of candidates in the regions	Failed
8. No pressure exerted on public observers Public observers are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, and local self-government, or from employers and heads of educational institutions; no problems with "black PR" or other such practices	Passed
9. Absence of unreasonable advantages for certain candidates during nomination, signature collection, and opening of support headquarters	Failed

Stage 2: Registration of candidates

Criteria	Passed/Failed
1. Free signature collection No obstacles to signature collection; no pressure exerted on collectors; no obstacles for the work of candidate headquarters by law enforcement bodies, authorities, and local self-government; no pressure from employers, heads of educational institutions, and other such persons.
2. Honest signature collection No falsification of signatures, "false" collectors who deliberately hand over "spoiled" signatures, or spoiling of signatures handed over to the election commission
3. Free support for candidate nomination No coercion of voters to sign for a particular candidate from law enforcement bodies and local self-government; no pressure from employers or heads of educational institutions; no instances of voter bribing
4. Political neutrality of officials No participation of state and municipal employees and other officials in organizing the process of signature collection
5. Openness and transparency of the signature verification mechanism No inequality in the verification of signatures in the CEC of Russia; no rejection of valid signatures
6. Justification of registration denials No political bias in the registration of candidates or justification of refusals; no artificial delay in the registration process
7. Impartiality of the CEC of Russia The CEC acts independently, professionally, and objectively; no influence is exerted by outside officials on its actions and decisions; political motivation is not a factor in deciding whether to register or not register candidates
8. No pressure exerted on supporters of candidates Supporters of candidates are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, and local self-government; no pressure is exerted on them by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.
9. No pressure on public observers Public observers are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, and local self-government, or from employers and heads of educational institutions; no problems with "black PR" or other such practices

Stage 3: Campaigning

Criteria	Passed/Failed
1. Use of only election fund resources for election campaigning All campaign materials, events, and work of the election headquarters staff is paid from the election fund; no shadow financing of the election campaign, including from the state budgets of all federal levels; no use of offices, equipment, or vehicles of government bodies, local self-government, or budgetary institutions
2. Equality in informing voters about candidates No indirect campaigning in print media, on television, and on the Internet (including state and municipal media) under the guise of covering official events with the participation of candidates
3. Free and voluntary participation of citizens in campaign activities No coercion of voters to participate in campaign events; no opposition to participation of citizens in campaigning by law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure exerted on voters by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.
4. Political neutrality of officials No participation of state and municipal employees in campaigning for candidates; no informal headquarters of candidates established in government bodies or state or municipal institutions
5. Impartiality of electoral commissions to complaints about campaigning Complaints are reviewed promptly and objectively
6. Independence in the activities of election commissions Election commissions act independently, professionally, and objectively; no influence is exerted by outside officials on the actions of the commissions or the decisions they make
7. Freedom of campaigning No obstacles in the dissemination of legitimate campaign materials or conducting campaign events; no illegal destruction of campaign materials; no obstacles in conducting campaigning by law enforcement bodies and authorities
8. No pressure exerted on supporters of candidates Supporters of candidates are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure is exerted on them by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.
9. No pressure exerted on voters Voters are not subjected to pressure, such as being forced to vote at their current location by law enforcement agencies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure exerted on voters by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.
10. No pressure exerted on public observers Public observers are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government, or from employers or heads of educational institutions; no problems with "black PR" or other such practices.

Stage 4: Election Day

Criteria	Passed/Failed
1. Voluntary voting No coercion of voters to vote: voters are not subjected to pressure from law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure is exerted on voters by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.
2. Observance of the secrecy of voting No coercion of voters to vote for a specific candidate; no control over the will of citizens; no bribery of voters
3. Observance of the principle of equality of votes No incidents of multiple voting, such as "cruise" voting, "roundabouts," and other such practices..
4. Observance of the principle of universal suffrage No restrictions of citizens in their right to vote; no prohibitions on voting imposed on citizens of Russia who reside abroad or who do not wish or are unable to vote at their place of residence; all citizens with disabilities may vote; all voters are included in the voter lists and have the right to vote
5. Observance of the principle of direct suffrage Each citizen votes personally for himself or herself; no ballot stuffing; no incidents of voting in the name of other people
6. Independence in the activities of election commissions Election commissions act independently, professionally, and objectively; no influence is exerted by outside officials on the actions of the commissions or the decisions they make
7. “Home-based” voting conducted in accordance with the law Citizens personally express a desire to vote "at home"; observers are given the right to be present at such a vote
8. Voting at the current location conducted in accordance with the law No coercion of citizens to vote at their current location; the voting procedure is transparent and supervised by public observers and election participants
9. Compliance with the ban on campaigning on the "day of silence" No campaigning within a radius of 50 meters from precinct election commissions; the rules of the "day of silence" are observed
10. Compliance with the counting procedure Vote counting is carried out publicly, continuously, and in stages; the data is recorded in a long form of the protocol
11. Preservation of election results Observers and members of the commission are given correctly certified copies of protocols; protocols are not illegally rewritten
12. Availability of video broadcasts from precinct and territorial election commissions for public control No obstacles for Russian voters to access video broadcasting from election commissions
13. Observance of the rights of observers, commission members, and media representatives All procedures are conducted publicly and openly; observers, members of commissions, and representatives of the media can freely move around the polling station, get acquainted with voter lists, and conduct photo and video recording; no instances of unmotivated removal of authorized persons from the polling stations; no pressure exerted on authorized persons by law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure exerted by employers or managers of educational institutions; no problems with "black PR" and other such practices
14. No pressure exerted on supporters of candidates Supporters of candidates are not subjected to pressure by law enforcement bodies, authorities, or local self-government; no pressure is exerted on them by employers, heads of educational institutions, or other such persons.