MOSCOW, Oct 27 (Reuters) - President Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday he did not rule out changes to electoral laws after this month's regional polls that were decried by opposition as a "stab in the back of democracy", Russian news agencies reported.
The pro-Kremlin United Russia party, led by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, scored a sweeping victory in a string of regional polls held on Oct. 11, consolidating further its domination in federal and provincial legislatures.
Opposition parties, which viewed the polls as an indicator of Medvedev’s commitment to stand up to his promises on democracy, accused the authorities of massive election fraud.
"The president noted that even in countries with mature democracy changes to the electoral system do happen," the agencies reported after Medvedev met Central Election Commission head Vladimir Churov. Foreign media were not invited.
"The rules are changing, the technology is changing, we should be reasonably conservative," Medvedev told Churov.
Medvedev hailed United Russia’s victory but the vote became a headache for the president, who had promised to make Russia’s political system more flexible and allow smaller parties squeezed out from the political stage during Putin’s presidency in 2000-08 to regain some weight.
Three opposition parties in the national parliament, the Communist Party, Fair Russia Party and Liberal Democratic Party, staged an unprecedented walkout protest demanding a review of election laws they say favour United Russia.
CHALLENGE IRREGULARITIES
On Saturday, Medvedev met leaders of the three opposition parties in his Gorki residence outside Moscow, also the venue of his meeting with Churov, advising them to challenge any election irregularities in court if they had any complaints.
The biggest demand of the Russian opposition is an abolition of early voting practice, branded by Kremlin opponents as the strongest instrument in manipulating poll results.
Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, whose party has joined opposition calls to dismiss Churov, said after meeting Medvedev he expected the president to address the issue in his state of the nation address due later in October or in early November.
Communists are campaigning in the State Duma lower house for a bill, which would give opposition guarantees of fair play.
"We will make conclusions after the state of the nation address, by the (fate of) the bill on opposition, and what is more important by the course of the next string of regional polls in March 2010," Zyuganov’s deputy Ivan Melnikov said in an interview posted on the party web site (www.kprf.ru) In Russia, all regional polls are held on two specially allocated days in March and October.
"The Central Election Commission should take into account all problems, all hitches that were revealed," Medvedev told Churov. Churov said he was planning to summon party leaders in late November to discuss a new round of elections. ([email protected]; +7 495 775 1242; Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))
