In 14 single member constituencies of Kharkiv oblast were registered 120 candidates, 40 of which (33%) are independent candidates (samovysuvantsi). Although the official campaign has started on July 30, the voters had the possibility to familiarize themselves with the whole range of agitation means of the candidates for deputy's mandates.
This is what everything started with
Already in spring, the first billboards, city-lights and other media of external advertising were demonstrating the appearance of a new political power on the national election market. This new power became the Ukraine-Ahead! party. Some time later, hidden agitation for the new project was held in form of sociological surveys. For example, the respondents were asked the following: "Do you know that Natalia Korolevska stand for the dismissal of the Prime Minister Mykola Azarov?"
The political parties started to use actively the modern media of distribution of information about their personalities, namely, the Internet resources. The candidates try to earn support from the youth and to disseminate information about different events on their personal web-pages. Among 14 candidates from the Party of Regions, Valerii Pysarenko, Oleksandr Feldman, Anatolii Denysenko, Dmytro Shentsev, and Anatolii Hyrshfeld have already created their own web-pages.
Some of them have active life in the social networks. For example, Iryna Berezhna, the candidate from the Party of Regions in the voting district #169, has her own profile on Facebook. The candidate from the People's Party Stanisalv Kosinov uses the direct advertising in the social network Vkontakte. In the beginning of August on the main page of a popular network in a special place designed for advertising appeared a sign "Add the candidate to your friend list" and an image of politician.
Long before the official names of single member candidates were announced, the Party of Regions has actively advertised its "potential" candidates. Valerii Pysarenko started his activity in the schools of Dzerzhynskyi rayon of Kharkiv city with the following slogan: "You think that your class in the best? Tell us about it and win the award."
Are not the kits a vote buying?
The end of April - beginning of May was an active period of "feeding" the voters. During this period a charity fund "Dopomozhy blyzhniomu" ("Help your neighbor") started its activity in a format of distribution of grocery kits among the veterans and children of war. The kits were accompanied by the agitation leaflets with the image of a "potential" candidate from the Party of regions in this district. Seven future candidates were personally engaged in the charitable activity: Iryna Horina, Oleksandr Feldman, Valerii Pysarenko, Iryna Berezhna, Anatolii Denysenko, etc. The majority of Kharkiv citizens had no idea about the source of charity and more than 50 % of respondents answered "No" to the question whether they will vote for this candidate. Before July 30, this activity could not have any legal implications because there was no direct means of reaction on the election charitable activity before the official start of campaign. Moreover, there were no registered candidates, election funds and local election commissions at all.
For the agitation in favor of their candidates, the majority of political powers use their public reception rooms, where the voters receive free consultations. For example, the party of Natalia Korolevska Ukraine-Ahead! created an "Opened Office" that functions as a typical public reception room.
All political powers use both old and new instruments to influence their electorate. But are they efficient? Will the veterans and pensioners vote for their benefactors?
New period - new activity
Other political powers and candidates started their activity after July 30. Kharkiv was plunged in blue-red-white agitation posters that invaded the city space. The number of billboards and city-lights significantly increased while the "remarkable" date of voting became closer. External and street advertising is the most popular among the political parties.
Political parties started to organize the events with leaders and top politicians more actively. On August 17-18, the United opposition conducted an opened teleconference bridge between Kharkiv and Kyiv. The citizens of Kharkiv communicated with Oleksandr Turchynov and Mykola Tomenko in a "live" format. Anatolii Hrytsenko, a candidate for the People's Deputy and #3 in the party list, together with other single member candidates were personally present at the event. On August 20 the leader of Ukraine-Ahead! party Natalia Korolevska and Andrii Shevchenko, the football star and #2 of the party list, conducted a meeting with the voters in a remote district of the city. One of the organizers of the event was a majoritarian candidate from this political power in the voting district #172.
Reference:
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 violations through comprehensive civic action. Professional monitoring at all stages of the election process indirectly influences the quality of the campaign. The public opinion, both foreign and domestic is formed through gathering and spreading of information among the target audience. From a strategic perspective public monitoring of elections focuses upon improving the system and certain procedures. In 2012, during Parliamentary elections in Ukraine OPORA implements a large-scale campaign of long- and short term observation, organizes a statistical vote-count by the results of voting with the proportional component of the electoral system on a basis of representative selection, will provide 100% coverage of polling stations by observers in separate single-mandate majoritarian districts. OPORA observers will work in all 225 electoral districts, and 3,500 activists will join them on the voting day. Organization will use the latest means of spreading information on observation results, including infographics and interactive maps.