2014 Presidential election campaign is being held in extremely tense social and political situation, and safety threats that appeared for the first time during the last twenty years. Nevertheless, all the necessary legal and organizational conditions were secured to conduct the elections democratically, so that nobody could cast doubt on it. However, the worsening of crime-breeding situation and activities of armed terroristic groups in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts oblige the corresponding government bodies to take measures and secure the safety of election process, members of election commissions, and electoral documentation, and make sure that the elections are held on the whole Ukrainian territory. In May, Civil Network OPORA presented an interactive Map of violations "2014 Elections", launched a training platform for observers, and created a number of voter awareness videos to mobilize the citizens and attract them to the election process.
Before May, candidates for the President of Ukraine have submitted more than 300 thousand candidates for precinct election commissions (PECs). However, district election commissions (DECs) in all Ukrainian regions have faced the shortage of candidates for members of PECs to get at least a minimum membership. Due to such situation, the Law of Ukraine on the Election of the President of Ukraine was amended in order to cut the minimum membership for PECs from 12 to 9 persons. Expectedly, the biggest problems during formation of PECs occurred in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Only 10 of 22 district election commissions in Donetsk oblast managed to properly create PECs. In Luhansk, for its part, only one DEC didn't manage to form PECs. Unfortunately, violence and threats against members of election commissions has intensified in these oblasts.
However, OPORA gives positive assessment to the procedure of forming PECs during special elections of the President of Ukraine. OPORA's analyst Oleksandr Kliuzhev has emphasized: "Problematic districts in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts are the exception, as long as armed separatists destabilize the election process, and the PECs were not created within time constraints established by the law because of their activities." According to OPORA's observers, submission of candidates to the membership of PECs and processing of documents in DECs were duly organized and conflict-free. In contrast to the previous elections, there were no incidents when one person was included in membership of PECs (so-called "doubles") by some Presidential candidates simultaneously. In general, the DECs rejected only 0,7% of candidatures, submitted for membership of PECs. This number is small, and shows that Presidential candidates have properly prepared documents needed for their inclusion.
The following Presidential candidates have the biggest number of representatives in PECs: Zorian Shkiriak, Yuliia Tymoshenko, Petro Poroshenko, Mykola Malomuzh, and Serhii Tihipko. Commission members from these candidates are included in more than 80% of PECs. Vadym Rabynovych, Vasyl Tsushko, Yurii Boiko, Dmytro Yarosh, and Renat Kuzmin have the smallest number of representatives in PECs: from 0,4% (Rabynovych) to 26% (Kuzmin). Olha Aivazovska, Electoral and Parliamentary Programs Coordinator of the Civil Network OPORA, stated: "The reason is that Presidential candidates were inactive in organization of the election process and failed to fill the quotas, provided by the Law. Moreover, two candidates – Valerii Konovaliuk and Andrii Hrynenko – didn't participate in the formation of PECs and didn't submit any candidacies."
According to calculations of the OPORA, heads of the DECs had to submit more than 27 thousand candidacies for membership of PECs, in order to reach the minimum membership. Besides that, OPORA detected some problems with DECs members' access to the information and analytical system "Election of the President of Ukraine" when distributing managing positions in PECs (DEC #58 (Donetsk obl.), #140 (Odesa obl.), #129-134 (Mykolaiv obl.), #202, 203 (Cherkasy obl.)).
Activities of criminal groups and pro-Russian provokers in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, numerous incidents when commission members are threatened, armed attacks and unlawful intervention in activities of DECs have gravely destabilized their functioning in these oblasts. Only 10 of 22 district election commissions in Donetsk oblast have managed to follow the procedure and form all PECs (territorial election districts #41, 45,46, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 61, 62). In Luhansk oblast, only DEC #108 didn't manage to form all PECs. Simultaneously, law enforcement bodies have started taking measures against such incidents. Besides that, on May 8, the Acting President of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov has signed the Order to provide due security for premises of district and precinct election commissions, as well as State Voter Register maintenance bodies during the preparation and conduct of Presidential election on May 25, 2014. However, on May 13, separatist groups have intensified their pressure upon members of election commissions, in order to disrupt the special elections of the President of Ukraine.
It should be mentioned, that socio-political and crime-breeding situation in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts require non-standard approach of Ukraine's state authorities in relation to securing citizen electoral rights, safety during the voting process, as well as development and implementation of the set of measures for the protection of participants of the election process and election commissions.
Civil Network OPORA has presented an interactive Map of violations for 2014 elections, which is updated online ( http://map.oporaua.org). Web-resource allows everyone interested to see electoral violations in every oblast separately or in the country, including 21 Presidential candidates and various types of violations (particularly, voter bribery, violation of campaigning rules, state officials influencing the election campaign, obstruction to campaigning activities, pressure on the media etc.). With the help of this web-resource, everyone who witnessed violations during the election process may report these facts, by sending the necessary photo and video proofs or documents through an online form. Besides that, OPORA has launched the training platform for electoral observers ( http://study.oporaua.org) and created a number of voter awareness videos to mobilize the citizens and attract them to the election process ( http://www.youtube.com/user/oporavideo).
Civic monitoring conducted by OPORA - is a type of network activity, aimed at impartial assessment of the preparation and conduct of elections, as well as preventing electoral violations through comprehensive civic action. Since March, OPORA conducts a wide observation campaign during snap Presidential election, interim Parliamentary elections (district #83), and special local elections. The organization cooperates with 175 long-term observers, who are watching the course of election campaign in all Ukrainian regions. On the Election Day on May 25, 3,000 activists will join them to conduct the parallel vote tabulation, based on statistical sample.