The development of the institution of regional elections in Russian regions in the 1990s

The study deals with the transformation of the political institution of regional elections in post-Soviet Russia. Based on the system and institutional approaches, the author reveals that if the Regional Council Elections in the spring of 1990 are regarded as the starting point in the transformation of the institution of regional elections, the next stage of their transformation is the Election to the State Authorities of the Constituent Entities of the Russian Federation in the mid-1990s as well as the 1995 State Assembly Deputies Election in the Republic of Bashkortostan. This election became a turning point in the development of the electoral institution in the Republic of Bashkortostan that indicated the predominance of authoritarian features in this process. First of all, it implied the facts that the dominant “government” approach to arranging election commissions was enshrined in the regional electoral law, the principle of voter equality was violated when establishing the constituencies, and political parties were allowed to nominate no more than three candidates. The emphasis was placed on the opportunity of the heads of local administrations appointed by the Republican authorities to be elected to the Parliament of Bashkortostan that contravened the principle of division of powers. Accordingly, further improvement of the election management was considered in the context of legal regulation enhanced in this regard.