CEC says journalists have no right to challenge denials of election accreditation

The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) stated that media outlets do not have the right to appeal against denials of accreditation to the elections. This was reported by IA "Law".

“Mass media and their representatives are not among those specified in paragraph 10 of Art. 75 of the Federal Law of subjects vested with the right to appeal to election commissions with complaints about decisions, actions (inaction) of election commissions and their officials that violate the electoral rights of citizens, ”follows from the objections of the CEC to a lawsuit in the Tverskoy Court of Moscow from journalists who were denied accreditation to the elections.

In May, the regional election commission of the Yaroslavl region withdrew accreditation to the elections of journalists who were declared “foreign agents”. She explained this decision by the fact that the law prohibits foreign agents "in other forms to participate in election campaigns." However, according to Arkady Lyubarev, a member of the board of the Golos voter rights movement, neither foreign media nor foreign media are prohibited from covering the activities of election commissions and the course of election campaigns.

“The reference to the fact that two journalists, as individuals, are included in the register of media outlets acting as foreign agents does not deprive them of the right to engage in professional activities, which was repeatedly emphasized by representatives of the authorities and the leadership of the Russian Central Election Commission. I hope this misunderstanding will be promptly resolved, and the citizens of Russia from the side of the election commissions will not be amazed in their rights, ”said Grigory Melkonyants, co-chairman of Golos.

On September 11, elections will be held for 15 heads of Russian regions, deputies of regional parliaments in 6 regions, as well as for representative bodies of local self-government in the capitals of 11 regions of the country.

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