2012 Russian presidential election

• 1. Constitutional Shifts In 2012

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  Presidential elections took place in Russia on the 4th of March 2012. This vote marked a significant change because it was the first election held after constitutional amendments introduced in 2008. Those amendments altered the term length for the president from four years to six years. The outgoing president Dmitry Medvedev proposed that his predecessor Vladimir Putin stand for the presidency during a congress of the ruling United Russia party in Moscow on the 24th of September 2011. Putin accepted this offer and immediately gave Medvedev the opportunity to run on the United Russia ticket in parliamentary elections later that December. All independent candidates had to register by the 15th of December 2011 while party-nominated candidates were required to register by the 18th of January 2012. The final list of registered candidates was announced on the 29th of January. On the 2nd of March outgoing president Medvedev addressed the nation on national television channels inviting citizens to vote.

• 2. Five Candidates And Campaign Strategies

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  The Central Election Commission officially registered five presidential candidates for the race. Vladimir Zhirinovsky represented the Liberal Democratic Party at age 65. Gennady Zyuganov led the Communist Party at age 67. Sergey Mironov ran as the nominee for A Just Russia at age 59. Mikhail Prokhorov stood as an independent candidate at age 46. Vladimir Putin represented United Russia at age 59. Prokhorov conducted a tour around the country meeting with supporters in various cities. He was the only other candidate besides Putin who visited Russia's regions during his campaign. If elected Prokhorov promised to reinstate elections for Russia's governorships and pardon Mikhail Khodorkovsky. He also pledged to reverse the constitutional amendment lengthening presidential terms from four years to six years. Prokhorov stated he would select Alexei Kudrin to serve as prime minister if he won. He promised to dismantle state control of media and prohibit all forms of censorship over major television and radio stations. Prokhorov further stated he favored better relations with the European Union and wanted to dismantle large energy monopolies including Gazprom. Putin published seven articles in different Russian newspapers to present his manifesto during the campaign.

• 3. Voting Procedures And Webcams

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  There were over 108 million eligible voters across the nation. Almost all 95,000 polling stations had webcams installed to observe the voting process. Following criticism of the vote in December elections two web cameras were dedicated to streaming activities at each polling station. The expense totaled five million dollars which amounted to about fifty dollars per polling station. By federal subject Vladimir Putin received 63.6 percent of the vote according to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation. Gennady Zyuganov secured 17.18 percent of the total votes cast. Mikhail Prokhorov received 7.98 percent of the vote while Vladimir Zhirinovsky took 6.22 percent. Sergey Mironov garnered 3.85 percent of the total ballots. Invalid votes accounted for 1.17 percent of the final count. Voting abroad showed a different pattern where 73.24 percent went to Putin compared to 13.56 percent for Prokhorov. The election cost 10.375 million roubles according to a report given by the Russian Central Election Commission. Budget funds were spared during the campaign period as noted in official documentation.

• 4. Irregularities And Observer Findings

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  International observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe found that all competitors had access to media but Putin was given clear prominence. Tonino Picula the Special Coordinator to lead the short-term OSCE observer mission stated there were serious problems from the very start of this election. He argued the point of elections is that the outcome should be uncertain which was not the case in Russia. There was no real competition and abuse of government resources ensured the ultimate winner was never in doubt. The OSCE concluded voting on the day of the election was assessed positively overall. However the process deteriorated during the vote count which was assessed negatively in almost one-third of polling stations observed due to procedural irregularities. Allegations were made that Putin supporters had been driven around in coaches to vote for him in multiple constituencies known as carousel voting. Vote stuffing was documented by video monitoring systems installed on most voting stations. The newspaper Pravda alleged industrial plants with continuous-cycle production violated the law by bussing workers to polling centers. Valentin Gorbunov chairman of the Moscow Election Committee countered the accusation saying this was normal practice. According to Iosif Diskin a member of the Public Chamber of Russia special observers controlled that workers had legal absentee certificates.

• 5. Protests And Inauguration Day

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  On the 11th of March 2012 approximately 15,000 to 20,000 protesters demonstrated on Novy Arbat street against perceived fraud and Putin's rule. MP Ilya Ponomaryov described the protesters' plans stating they must be the government's constant nightmare and build up to a crescendo of protests at the time of Putin's inauguration in early May. Putin was inaugurated in the Kremlin on the 7th of May 2012. Public protests had taken place in Moscow on the 6th of May with an estimated 8,000 to 20,000 protesters taking part. Eighty people were injured in confrontations with police including over thirty policemen. Four hundred fifty arrests were made on the 6th of May and another one hundred twenty arrests occurred the following day. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation did not acknowledge the results of the election. Ruža Tomašić an OSCE observer from Croatia noted there were no irregularities at five polling stations near Kaluga. Claims that Putin's share of the vote was inflated by up to ten percent were dismissed by Putin in a talk with journalists.