Legitimising Victories: Electoral Authoritarian Control in Russia's Gubernatorial Elections

• Published in: Europe-Asia studies Vol. 70; no. 2; pp. 182 - 201
• Main Authors: Smyth, Regina, Turovsky, Rostislav
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Routledge 07.02.2018; Taylor & Francis; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Authoritarianism; Ballots; Candidates; Competition; Elections; Incentives; Manipulation; Punishment; State elections; Voter fraud; Voter turnout; Russia

We explore the evolution of the Kremlin's election control strategy in response to the reintroduction of gubernatorial elections in 2012. Our analysis focuses on the evolution of four tools used to engineer electoral competition: auxiliary institutions, subnational punishment regimes, ballot co...