What if an extremist infiltrates the governorship?!

On December 22, 2008, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev submitted to the State Duma a bill amending the Federal Law "On the General Principles of Organization of Legislative (Representative) and Executive Bodies of State Power of the Subjects of the Russian Federation" and the Federal Law "On Political Parties". Among other things, the president proposes to deprive those who were involved in administrative extremist violations of the opportunity to be appointed governors.

The President proposes to supplement paragraph 3 of Article 18 of the Federal Law "On the General Principles of Organization of Legislative (Representative) and Executive Bodies of State Power of the Subjects of the Russian Federation" with an additional paragraph limiting the circle of those who can be appointed governor:

"subjected to administrative punishment for committing administrative offenses under Articles 20.3 [propaganda and public display of Nazi paraphernalia or symbols] and (or) 20.29 [production and distribution of extremist materials] of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (during the period when a person is considered subjected to administrative punishment)" .

The allocation of violators of anti-extremist articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses into a separate category seems strange to us.

First, it is not entirely clear why petty hooliganism, consumer fraud or vote bribery, as well as other administrative violations, cannot serve as an obstacle to work as a governor, but violation of these two articles can.

Secondly, the new bill does not propose significant changes in the procedure for changing the heads of constituent entities of the Russian Federation: although the compilation of a list of three candidates is entrusted to the party that received the majority of votes in the region, the president still chooses and appoints the governor personally. It is difficult to imagine a situation in which a person who, shortly before this, publicly shouted Nazi slogans or distributed leaflets with SS symbols, could be at the head of a subject of the federation in this way.

Sources

• FEDERAL LAW On Amendments to the Federal Law "On the General Principles of Organization of Legislative (Representative) and Executive Bodies of State Power of the Subjects of the Russian Federation" and to the Federal Law "On Political Parties" // Bill card. Website of the State Duma of the Russian Federation. 2008. December 22.