MOSCOW, July 30 (RIA Novosti) - Amendments to the law on elections are aimed at helping the stable development of the political system in Russia, putting the election process in order, and increasing the role of parties in the country, said State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov Saturday.
Gryzlov was commenting on a law signed by President Putin on July 22 on changes and additions to election legislation.
This document is linked to previously implemented laws, primarily with the new statutory wording of the law on the election of State Duma deputies under a proportional representation system.
The speaker said that the implementation of a number of documents aimed at improving the electoral system will tackle coordination problems which could hinder parties in preparing for elections.
The amendments will only allow those parties to compete in elections who have a real program of action, and are capable of answering to the electorate.
Gryzlov said that in accordance with the law, elections will all take place on consecutive days, and there will be a 7 percent barrier for parties to enter the State Duma (at the last Duma elections on December 7, 2003, Anatoli Chubais's Union of Right Forces and Alexei Yavlinsky's Yabloko did not reach the 5% barrier, and therefore their parties could not be represented in the Duma).
The new law will also reduce the number of non-eligible or invalid electorate signatures permitted from 25% to 10%.
