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LEGAL QUALITY OF THE CONSTITUTIONS (STATUTES) OF THE SUBJECTS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Russia in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation is a federal law-governed state. The laws of the Russian Federation form federal normative acts and normative acts of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the constitutions (statutes) of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation play a special role in the legislative system of the Russian Federation, since they determine the status of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, and, when necessary, supplement the regulation established by federal laws. In this regard, the constitutions (statutes) of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation represent a link between the different levels of legal regulation of federal relations. Due to this circumstance the special attention is given to the legal quality of the content, structure and registration of acts of constitutional (statutory) regulation.

However, the current constitutions (statutes) of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation do not always reflect the characteristics of the legal quality. Some acts of constitutional (statutory) regulation contain provisions that directly contradict the requirements of federal normative acts, far from all constitutions (statutes) use the achievements of legal techniques. At the same time, the presence of poor-quality constitutions (statutes) in the legislative system of the Russian Federation is one of the main conditions destabilizing federal relations, creating a threat to state integrity and the unity of the legal space of the Russian Federation.

ELECTION CAMPAIGN AT TELECOMMUNICATION NETWORK "INTERNET"

The Internet, in general, has already outgrown the ordinary understanding of being a communication means between people. As the literature notes, the Internet is independent space or as it is called "cyberspace", which creates a new reality in many ways for individuals and organizations, as well as for countries. The Internet can be regarded as one of the major life spheres along with earth, water, air and space, and shall be coordinated with the help of legal measures. Basing on such understanding of the Internet nature, it is clear that the impact of the Internet on a personal identity should be reconsidered. In modern society, the Internet is closely linked to the implementation of the most important constitutional rights such as the right of association, the right to freedom of thought and speech, with various rights related to information dissemination, transfer, receipt and use of information.

Therefore, the Internet is an integral part of the personality status of a modern human. Even now you can meet such a notion as a virtual personality, who is an active participant in many public relations.

As it is stated in the literature, the powerful impact of new technologies on the legal regime of electoral relations generates adequate changes and qualitative improvement of the relevant legislation. Thus, changing electoral law, ensuring its correlation with the information legislation is an obvious need of a modern Russian society.

THE CONCEPT OF SINGLE VOTING DAYS: REALITY AND POSSIBLE PROSPECTS

Russian electoral law is the most complicated legal matter that is predetermined by the variety of public relations arising in the electoral process. As a result, the suffrage system integrates the combination of legal institutions which are various  in content and functional purpose. Ultimately, all the variety of legal regulations governing the procedure of organizing and holding of elections in the territory of the Russian Federation is aimed at guaranteeing voting rights in general, as well as individual electoral powers of citizens. Many authors comment on such providing function of electoral legislation in their academic writings. The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation confirmed the availability of such function. The Court repeatedly pointed out that the main target of the electoral legislation is to ensure the realization of the electorate rights.

At the same time, it should be noted that there are certain regulations which have systematic value for all electoral institutions at the current electoral law of the Russian Federation. Their optimality is an indication of legal quality of the electoral legislation, as the efficiency of the entire set of rules, regulating the procedure of elections, depends on the success of the legislative solutions described in such regulations. 

Such provisions include rules on single voting days in the Russian Federation. It is obvious that the failure of the legislative concept adopted in regard to the question of single election days can give rise to a whole range of law-enforcement issues related to the organization of elections and voting, as well as to the terms of office of the relevant elected public authorities and officials.

THE LEGAL STATUS OF PRECINCT COMMISSIONS IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION: CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The activity of the bodies, whose aim is to ensure the process of periodic renewal of power, is the object of close attention from the society side. And it simply cannot be the other way, since elections based on democratic principles are the basic social need, while the power changed in a civilized way is a condition for the progressive development of all social institutions, a guarantee that everybody is equal before the law, as well as a precondition for a fair division of public wealth. At the same time, in the context of any election campaign both in Russia and abroad, the main burden of responsibility, when we speak about professionalism in the organization of election procedures, as well as legality and reliability of the results of voting, is held by election commissions at the precinct level. In connection with it there is a completely logical question, regarding the basis for the effective operation of these bodies. The effectiveness of precinct commissions is determined by a whole set of factors that have a social and psychological nature (the level of legal awareness and culture, the level of motivation and enthusiasm of commission members), as well as a material and economic nature (fair remuneration for their work, availability of material guarantees).

However, in the most cases the general factor of the optimal activity of precinct commissions is the competent and balanced legal regulation of their legal status. The legal status of the precinct commissions is a complex legal category, which includes such parts as: status-preceding element (the legal capacity of commissions, the procedure for organization of these bodies, requirements to the members of such commissions), status element (scope of activities, as well as the basic rights and obligations of precinct commissions), status-resulting element (consequences of inadequate activity of commissions, as well as responsibility of these bodies and their members). Thus, incomplete or contradictory legislative regulation of any of these elements of the legal status of precinct commissions brings to nothing any social or material and economic preconditions for professional and efficient work of such bodies. And, on the contrary, the adequate regulation of the status-preceding, status and status-resulting elements of the legal status of the commissions increases their efficiency, as well as the legitimacy and effectiveness of their activities.

LAW ENFORCEMENT DISCRETIONS IN THE WORK OF ELECTION COMMISSIONS

According to Sub-paragraph 21 Article 2 of No. 67-FZ Federal law “On basic guarantees of electoral rights and the right to participate in the referendum of the citizens of the Russian Federation" dated June 12, 2002 (hereinafter, referred to as the Federal law on basic guarantees of electoral rights), election commissions are collegial bodies which organize and arrange preparation and holding elections and referendums. Besides, if to analyze the scope of their jurisdiction settled in elections and referendum law, election commissions can also be defined as the bodies carrying out law enforcement activity. Law enforcement activity is a special form of law implementation. It is in process when a legal norm cannot be enforced without intervention of competent authorities. Public authorities are active subjects of law enforcement activity. In connection with the above mentioned, law enforcement activity can be defined as power activity of competent bodies to enforce legal norms in definite real life cases and definite individual.

Axiological value of law enforcement activity should be specially highlighted here. Law enforcement activity as law implementation form has a special social and individual value, because it acts as an obligatory means of right enjoyment for parties or guarantees right protection and restitution.

Discretion has a special role in law enforcement activity, its purpose is to solve the issues raised during law enforcement activity. It is truly noted in publications that discretion is a socially reasonable legal phenomenon where law adaptability to changing historical conditions and certain situations is realized. At the same time discretion at the terms of law enforcement activity acts as a means deciding certain scope of law exercising activities for a public authority.

GRANTING ELECTORAL RIGHTS TO FOREIGN CITIZENS LIVING ABROAD

It is commonly considered that electoral rights as political rights derive from person's having citizenship, which in its turn, is a form of legal connection between the given person and a certain country. Though the ideas of legal transboundariness and caused tendency of cultural mix, steadily progressing all over the world, have resulted in an urgent need of unification and standardization of foreigners' involvement in the political sphere in their host countries, and as a result of it, the necessity to grant to foreign citizens a complex electoral right or certain electoral powers during local and regional elections in their country of residence. Granting electoral rights to foreign citizens in democratic countries in the modern world shows significant attitudinal changes, occurring in the society towards the role of migration processes and the special statuses caused by these processes under conditions of gradual blurring of the boundaries between countries.

Historical analysis of the forms of democracy points out, that even in antiquity only the citizens had a right to participate in the political life of the country. The legal systems of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome included the norms about visiting representative assemblies, taking an elective office by individuals who have citizenship status. For instance, Athens legislation prescribed to exclude from the lists of people, participating in the elections, those "who were not born from a citizen father and citizen mother".

Prevalence of the principle of citizenship (nationality) as a condition for participation in elections is typical for the Middle Ages too. For example, when forming local government authorities in Italy, citizens with full rights, such as knights, rear vassals and merchants who owned land, were granted electoral rights.
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