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Viewing cable 08VLADIVOSTOK116, FAR EAST ELECTIONS: RESULTS AS PREDICTED

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
08VLADIVOSTOK116 2008-10-14 06:57 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Consulate Vladivostok
VZCZCXRO4897
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHCHI RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFK RUEHFL RUEHHM RUEHIK
RUEHKSO RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNAG RUEHPB RUEHPOD RUEHROV
RUEHSR RUEHYG
DE RUEHVK #0116 2880657
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 140657Z OCT 08
FM AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1024
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHZU/ASIAN PACIFIC ECONOMIC COOPERATION COLLECTIVE
RUEHVK/AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK 1121
UNCLAS VLADIVOSTOK 000116 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV RS
SUBJECT: FAR EAST ELECTIONS:  RESULTS AS PREDICTED 
 
REF: A. A) VLADIVOSTOK 105 
     B. B) VLADIVOSTOK 101 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
1.  Elections completed in five Far East jurisdictions on 
October 12 yielded no surprises, with Yedinaya Rossiya and 
incumbents prevailing (reftel A).  Roman Abramovich and his team 
handily won three seats in the Chukotka Duma, Yedinaya Rossiya 
won 12 of 14 Sakhalin seats, and incumbent mayors Pechyoniy and 
Sokolov held their positions in Magadan and Khabarovsk.  Less 
than seven percent of voters turned up at the polls to elect the 
Governor's man Leonid Preminger to the Primorye Kray Duma. 
 
Abramovich Returns to Chukotka 
------------------------------ 
 
2.  Former governor Roman Abramovich and his team trounced the 
opposition to win three seats in the Chukotka Duma.  Support for 
Abramovich has been so strong that local politicians all but 
begged him to return to the area as chair the Okrug Duma (reftel 
B).  Abramovich won 97 percent of the popular vote, with his 
deputies Andrey Gorodilov and Aramais Dallakyan gaining over 90 
and 80 percent respectively. 
 
Little Enthusiasm for Primorye Governor's Man 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
3.  Leonid Preminger won his bid for Kray Duma seat in an 
election all but ignored by Vladivostok voters.  Only 5,701 
voters -- 7.62% of those eligible -- went to the polls, half of 
whom were ship crew members reportedly ordered to vote, with 
instructions on who to vote for, by their commanders.  The 
Communist Party, whose local leader Vladimir Grishukov 
officially received 21 percent of the vote, has announced plans 
to file a grievance with the election committee contesting the 
results.  Consulate contact Nikolay Markovtsev, whom many 
observers say has the most popular support, received 14 percent 
of the official tally. 
 
Incumbent Mayors Re-elected 
--------------------------- 
 
4.  Incumbent mayors Aleksandr Sokolov of Khabarovsk and 
Vladimir Pechyoniy retained their posts.  Sokolov remains 
genuinely popular with residents, and is generally given credit 
for improvements in the city that lead to its being named 
Russia's Most Comfortable City twice. 
 
5.  Magadan elections followed the Khabarovsk scenario -- a 
genuinely popular mayor won against weak and largely unknown 
opposition.  Pechyoniy's main opponent Igor Novikov, a 
businessman with an alleged history of criminal activities, 
reportedly sent two associates to physically intimidate reporter 
and consulate contact Mikhail Gorbunov  into publishing 
favorable articles about his candidacy. 
 
Yedinaya Rossiya Big In Sakhalin 
-------------------------------- 
 
6.  As expected, Yedinaya Rossia made a strong showing in Kray 
Duma elections, garnering 55 percent of the vote and 12 of 14 
single-mandate Duma districts.  The party now controls 21 of the 
28 Duma seats. The Communists improved on the previous 
election's results, and will have four seats in the Duma. 
Spravedlivaya Rossia will hold two seats and the LDPR will have 
one. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
7.  Though Yedinaya Rossiya won as expected, the Sakhalin 
elections may be a good indicator of the public's real mood. 
Many observers expected YR to receive much more than the 55 
percent it got.  The Communists, on the other, fared better than 
expected, receiving 23 percent this year compared to 14 percent 
in the previous election.  If that result is interpreted as a 
protest vote against YR, it is interesting to note that the main 
opposition ends up coming from the Communists. 
 
ARMBRUSTER