Home > 1.3.1 Freedom of voters to form an opinion > RUSSIAN FEDERATION - Federal Law on Elections of Deputies to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation
 
 
 
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Article 78
 

1. Voting premises shall be made available free of charge to the precinct election commission by the head of the local administration of the corresponding municipality, and, in cases stipulated by this Federal Law, by the commander of a military unit, captain of a vessel, head of the polar station, head of a diplomatic mission or consular institution of the Russian Federation.


2. Voting premises shall have a hall, where booths or other specially equipped places for secret voting shall be placed, equipped with lighting and provided with writing materials (except pencils).


3. In the voting premises or directly in front of them the precinct election commission shall place an information board (information boards), which shall contain the following information on all federal lists of candidates on the ballot, and on the political parties that nominated them:


1) the name of the political party;


2) biographies of registered candidates on the federal part of the federal lists of candidates and corresponding regional groups of candidates, in the amount established by the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, but not less than the amount set for the publication of the registered federal lists of candidates; 3) information on the provision of any information found to be false, with respect to registered candidates included in the federal part of the federal lists of candidates and the corresponding regional groups of candidates, as provided by Part 5 of Article 42 of this Federal Law (if there is such information).


4. The following biographical data on each registered candidates on the ballot for voting in a single-mandate electoral district shall be placed on the information board:


1) biography of a registered candidate in the amount established by the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, but not less than the amount of biographical data entered on the ballot;


2) If the candidate is nominated by a political party, - the words "nominated by a political party", indicating the name of the political party;


3) if a self-nominated candidate , - the word "self-nomination";


4) information on the facts submitted by the candidate found to be false, as provided by part 5 of Article 41, paragraph 1 of part 5 of Article 42 or part 1 of Article 43 of this Federal Law (if there is such information).


5. If any of the registered candidates, including those included in the federal list of candidates, had or have a criminal record, the materials posted on the information board shall provide information about the candidate's criminal record, and, if it expired or was expunged, the date when it expired or was expunged.


6. Samples of filled ballots shall be placed on the information board, which should not contain names of registered candidates or names of political parties which nominated federal lists of candidates.


7. Information on political parties and registered candidates on the ballot shall be placed in the information materials in the same sequence that was established when the form and text of the ballots were approved.


8. The information stand shall contain excerpts from the criminal legislation of the Russian Federation, legislation of the Russian Federation on administrative offences, related to the responsibility for violation of the legislation of the Russian Federation on elections.


9. Materials placed on the information board should not contain signs of electoral campaigning. These materials shall be placed by the precinct election commission so as to enable voters to freely familiarize themselves with these materials.


10. In order to inform citizens who are visually impaired, the information board shall include materials referred to in parts 3 - 5 and 7 of this Article, made in large print, and (or) using the relief-dot Braille. Polling stations the information boards of which shall contain such materials shall be determined by decision of the election commission of a Russian Federation subject.


11. Federal lists of candidates registered by the Central Election Commission shall be placed in voting premises.


12. Enlarged forms of protocols of the precinct election commission on voting results, intended for the entry of data on voting results as they are established, shall also be placed in voting premises. Enlarged forms of protocols shall be posted before the start of voting and should be in sight of members of the precinct election commission, observers, and within the distance necessary for the perception of the information contained in them. Enlarged forms of protocols do not replace protocols of the precinct election commission on the voting results and the data recorded in them shall have no legal value.


13. Stationary ballot boxes shall be placed in the voting premises, made of transparent or semi-transparent material in accordance with the requirements for technological equipment, approved by the Central Election Commission. Technical means of counting votes, including software and hardware for processing ballots, may be used as stationary ballot boxes. Electronic voting systems may also be used for voting. Technical means of counting votes, electronic voting systems shall be used in accordance with the Federal Law "On Basic Guarantees", and in accordance with instructions approved by the Central Election Commission.


14. Voting premises must be equipped in such a way that the place for issuing of ballots, the cabins and other specially equipped places for secret voting, and the stationary ballot boxes were in sight of the precinct election commission members and observers.


15. Means of video surveillance and broadcasting may be used in voting premises, with the exception of voting premises located in the polling stations formed in hospitals and other health care organizations that have inpatient units, in places of detention of suspects and accused persons, other places of temporary stay, military units, vessels that will be at sea on the voting day, in polar stations, as well as in precincts formed outside the territory of the Russian Federation. In voting premises located at the polling stations where the military vote, with the exception of voting premises of the precincts located in military units, video surveillance and broadcasting shall be used with the consent of the commander of the military unit. The image obtained in the voting premises by means of video surveillance and broadcasting shall be broadcast on Internet. Installation in the voting premises of video surveillance and broadcasting, and broadcasting of images on Internet shall be organized and provided by the federal executive authority charged with carrying out the development and implementation of the state policy and normative regulation in the area of information technologies (including the use of information technology for the formation of state information resources and ensuring access to them), telecommunications (including the use and conversion of the radio frequency spectrum) and postal communication, mass communication and mass media, including electronic media (including the development of Internet, television systems (including digital) and radio broadcasting and new technologies in these areas), printing, publishing and printing, personal data processing, management of state property and the provision of public services in the field of information technology, including the use of information technology for the formation of state information resources and ensuring access to them, as well as the development and implementation of state policy on protecting children from information harmful to their health and (or) development. The procedure for using video surveillance and broadcasting in voting premises, as well broadcasting of images on Internet, shall be established by the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation in coordination with the mentioned federal executive body.


16. When equipping polling station premises the conditions for unhindered access to this premises and voting in it shall be provided for disabled voters according to the legislation of the Russian Federation. Assistance is provided to such persons while conducting voting in order to implement their active suffrage in compliance with requirements, stipulated by the present Federal law and other federal laws.