Home > 2.1 The competent bodies and their tasks > RUSSIAN FEDERATION - Federal Law on Presidential Elections in the Russian Federation
 
 
 
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Article 46
 

1. Voters shall be kept informed by governmental bodies, local authorities, election commissions, mass media organizations, legal entities and individuals in accordance with this Federal Law and with the Federal Law On Basic Guarantees of Voting Rights and the Right to Take Part in a Referendum Belonging to the Russian Federation Citizens. Governmental bodies and local authorities shall not be entitled to provide voters with any information of the candidates or political parties. (as amended by Federal Law No. 93-FZ of July 21, 2005)


2. Information materials distributed via the mass media or by any other means shall be objective and reliable and shall not affect the equality of candidates.


3. Voters shall be kept informed, via the mass media or other means without limitation, of preparation and holding of the election of the President of the Russian Federation, of the time and procedures for performance of electoral actions, of political parties that nominated the candidates, of the candidates, groups of voters and laws on the election of the President of the Russian Federation, by election commissions. Election commissions shall also take the reasonable measures to keep physically challenged voters informed. (as amended by Federal Laws No. 93-FZ of July 21, 2005 and No. 143-FZ of June 14, 2011)


4. Mass media organizations shall be free in their activities aimed at keeping voters informed subject to this Federal Law.


5. In TV and radio news programs and in the publications carried by the printed periodicals the reports concerning election events organized by candidates, their agents, political parties and/or groups of voters shall be always presented in the form of a separate news block, without any comments. Such news blocks shall not be paid for by candidates, their agents or authorized representatives for financial issues, by political parties and/or groups of voters. They shall not be biased in favor of or against any candidate, in particular with regard to the time devoted to highlighting their election activities or the size of the space in the printed periodicals allocated for such reports. (as amended by Federal Law No. 93-FZ of July 21, 2005)


6. Journalists, other creative specialists and/or officials of any mass media organization engaged in activities aimed at the provision of informational support to the election of the President of the Russian Federation in accordance with the laws on the election of the President of the Russian Federation shall not be fired by the employer or transferred to other positions without their consent during the election campaign within the given election of the President of the Russian Federation and during one year thereafter, save the case where a disciplinary action was taken against them in accordance with the labor laws of the Russian Federation and this action was not appealed to a court or was declared valid and appropriate by a court. (as amended by Federal Law No. 93-FZ of July 21, 2005)


7. On the voting day, before the end of the voting procedure in the territory of the Russian Federation, no information shall be published (disclosed) about the results of the election and no such information shall be placed in any information and telecommunications networks with unlimited access (including the Internet). (as amended by Federal Laws No. 93-FZ of July 21, 2005 and No. 200-FZ of July 11, 2011)