In the Federation Council proposed to deprive of liberty for five years for election fraud
MOSCOW, may 15 — RIA Novosti. A bill providing for criminal responsibility for such violations of the election as illegal issuance and receipt of ballots, prepared and will be soon submitted to the Duma; the maximum penalty will be five years in prison, told RIA Novosti one of the authors of the bill, the head of the Federation Council Committee on constitutional legislation Andrey Klishas.
“The bill has been prepared and will soon be made,” said the Senator.
According to him, the bill provides introduction of criminal liability for unlawful delivery and unlawful receipt of a ballot paper or ballot referendum, if these acts are committed more than twice during the same vote.
“The maximum penalty for these crimes would be four years imprisonment. However, there are also alternative forms of punishment such as fines and forced labor. If the illegal issuance and / or receipt of ballots is perfected by group of persons, the maximum penalty for the participants of this group will be five years of imprisonment”, — said Klishas.
Currently, said Klishas, the criminal law provides for liability for a number of election law violations, such as falsification of results of voting or falsification of electoral documents, but for the illegal results, or illegal obtaining of the ballot is provided only administrative responsibility. However, there are cases when one person illegally gives or receives a large number of ballots, and after the offense are stopped, it is only attracted to administrative responsibility with penalty a minor penalty, said the Senator.
The proposed draft Federal law is intended to prevent the above-mentioned practices and to a certain extent to increase the transparency of the elections.Andrew Kosacheva of the Federation Council Committee on constitutional legislation
According to him, the draft law introduces criminal responsibility only for illegal re-issuing of the ballot. “We understand that an election Commission member can make a mistake, re-issuing the ballot without complying with the necessary procedures, then it will be brought to administrative responsibility. But if the intent of the person covered by the systematic illegal transfer or receipt of ballot papers undermining the constitutional basis of the election, then it must be more strict criminal responsibility”, — said the Senator.
According to him, defining penalties for such offences, the authors of the bill came from the fact that the illegal issuance of the Bulletin of member of the Commission, and unlawful receipt of the ballot by a voting person “when they are massive, have the same degree of public danger”.
Overall Clisham made and adopted by the state Duma in the first reading a package of amendments to election legislation aimed at increasing the transparency of elections, and the liberalization of the approach to the appointment of observers and improving the accessibility of voting stations.
In particular, to simplify the requirements for collecting signatures in support of a candidate, introduced additional safeguards to ensure the publicity of activities of election commissions, and provides for additional rights of observers.
Earlier, the head of the Committee submitted to the state Duma a package of bills aimed at increasing transparency of the presidential and other election document on Wednesday was passed by the lower chamber on first reading. The bills provide for the abolition of absentee certificates for voting on presidential elections not by place of residence, cancellation of obligatory registration of voters at polling stations, increasing the number of polling stations.