Elections are a political and legal instrument of a stable civil society and sustained national development. They are always a key event in the political life of any country and a powerful impetus for the development of democracy, President Putin said during the talk with the CEC members.
He noted that Russia’s recent history has more than once demonstrated the key role of the institution of free elections. Without elections and the adoption of a new Constitution, the country would have been unable to overcome the severe crisis of the early 1990s.
President Putin described the holding of independent election campaigns, the more active involvement of the civil society in monitoring the organisation and progress of voting and vote counting as major achievements.
The fact that the 10th anniversary of the Russian electoral system fell on the start of the Duma election campaign, he said, provides a good occasion for a balanced assessment, a review of interim results and another look at the prospects for development. Among the results, the President named the five federal campaigns to elect the State Duma and the President and the more than 6,000 regional and municipal elections.
Speaking about the immediate tasks of the Central Election Commission, Mr Putin gave particular attention to the preparations for the presidential elections in Chechnya and called on the CEC to render support to the Election Commission in the republic.
The head of state praised the creation of the computerised system Vybory (Elections), which promptly summarises the election results, which is very important considering the country’s vast territory and remoteness of some polling stations.