Even as these the West hails Russia's efforts at democracy, the Russian people themselves are still wary of the power of the ballot box. There are widespread suspicions among Russians that Yeltsin will do anything to stay in power, even rig the vote "The Communists are calling for a dual monitoring system," says TIME Moscow bureau chief John Kohan. "But in reality, once you get out into the provinces, vote fixing is widespread and will be done by all side." Given the climate of mistrust, and speculation about voter fraud, Kohan reports that none of the June 16 outcomes is likely to bring political stability to Russia. If Yeltsin wins outright, if he wins in run-off election, or even if he wins by ballot manipulation and fraud , the Communists are likely to contest the results. "As tensions between the Kremlin and the hardline opposition mount over the election outcome, militant Communist supporters could take to the streets in the kind of violent clashes with police that culminated in the bloody October putsch attempt and the Kremlin crackdown on hardliners," says Kohan. And if Zyuganov appears to be the winner, either in the first or second round, then the Yeltsin team might take measures to overturn the vote within or without the framework of the Constitution and Russian electoral law. "For all Yeltsin's talk of faith, hope and love," says Kohan. "Russians know Boris to be a wily politician whose life has revolved around getting and holding power." --Lamia Abu-Haidar
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 |
|
 |
|
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14.7 % |
 |
7.41 % |
 |
5.76 % |
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0.52 % |
| 70 % voter turnout |
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