The 2013 Moscow mayoral election was held on September 8, 2013, as part of the regional elections, at the same time as the elections in
Moscow Oblast and other
Oblasts were held.
Elections were held after Mayor
Sergey Sobyanin had announced his departure on June 4. The elections were the first time in 10 years that citizens of the
federal city of Moscow could choose their
mayor by a
popular vote.[1]
The position of Mayor of Moscow was elected between 1991 and 2004. In 2004,
Vladimir Putin suggested a law to abolish direct elections of governors, the Moscow mayor, and presidents of Russian regions. The law was swiftly adopted by the parliament.[6] The new legislation moved the
election system to an
indirect one in which
parliamentary political parties and the
President of Russia nominated a candidate who must then have been approved by the
Moscow City Duma. Following the
2011–13 Russian protests which followed the
2011 parliamentary election, President
Dmitry Medvedev offered to re-introduce the direct elections of the governors and the mayor of Moscow, and corresponding legislation was approved by the Parliament.[7]
On June 5, 2013, the incumbent
mayor, Sergey Sobyanin, who was nominated as mayor in 2010, announced his resignation from the post. Russian law allows the mayor to resign and run again for the same office if the president gives his approval.[8] A short time later, Sobyanin confirmed his intention to stand for election.[citation needed]
Regulations
A candidate to the office must be
citizen of the Russian Federation over the age of 30. Self-nomination of candidates for the post of Mayor of Moscow, and the collection of signatures of 1% of Moscow voters (about 73 000 signatures[9][10][11]) in support of the nomination shall be made within 30 days of the official publication of the decision to call the election. Or alternatively these signatures are not needed for candidates from
registered political party.[12]
Each of the political parties (electoral blocks were cancelled in the early 2000s) can nominate only one candidate for the post of mayor. In this case, the candidate can not give consent to be nominated from several polling organizations. The candidate nominated by self-nomination cannot give consent to be nominated in the same election by an electoral association.[12]
A candidate for mayor of Moscow may have up to 100 "trusted representatives".[12] The maximum amount of a candidate's election fund shall not exceed 200 million rubles. In the second round of this amount may be increased by 10 percent.[12]
Municipal filter
All registered candidates are required to pass so called
municipal filter introduced be a federal law of 2012:[13] all candidates are required to receive support from at least 6% of elected municipal deputies or heads of municipalities. Those supporting municipal deputies should represent no less than 75% of the federal subject's municipalities. One deputy can only support one candidate.[12] For Moscow 2013 elections it means that every candidate should provide signatures of at least 110 elected municipal deputies representing 75% of all Moscow municipalities.[10] Since most municipalities are controlled by the United Russia party the municipal filter is especially hard to pass for the opposition candidates.[14]
Criteria for election
To be elected a candidate must get more than 50% of votes. If no one achieves 50%, a runoff is to be held in 14 days. Only the two most successful candidates from the first round participate in the second round.[12]
Election date
In a vote held on June 6, 27 members of
Moscow City Duma backed the proposed date, and only two voted against it.[15]
Registered candidates
Registration for the election was completed on July 17.[16]
Sergey Sobyanin, running as self-nominated,[16] acting
Mayor of Moscow, one of the leaders of political party
United Russia, current member of bureau of the Supreme Council of the United Russia,[17] current member of presidium of Regional Council of the United Russia in Moscow[18] and the head (political council secretary) of the party's Moscow branch from March 2011 to December 2012.[17][19]
Samson Sholademi,[28][29] businessman and blogger of African descent (formally he abandoned his campaign in protest against Sobyanin helping Navalny to pass the "municipal filter").