Scaling of remote electronic voting in Russia

The idea of conducting online voting in Russia in political elections without the need to visit a polling station was born about 20 years ago. All chairmen of the CEC of the Russian Federation, starting with A.A. Veshnyakov, announced the possibility of using online voting technology. In 2019, for the first time in Russia, remote electronic voting (DEV) was held with the legal significance of the results. The article contains a description of the evolution of the idea of introducing remote voting. The authors have identified four stages, each of which is marked by specific statements and decisions regarding voting via the Internet. Also, an analysis was made of the level of interest of the subjects of the Russian Federation in holding elections using the DEG. Currently, the Russian regions are the initiators of online voting. Applications are submitted «from below», and then considered at a meeting of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation. The state does not force subjects to conduct a DEG in a directive way. According to the results of the study, it was revealed that about 20 subjects were interested in conducting a DEG on their territory. From 2019 to 2022, the CEC approved the conduct of the DEG in 12 regions.