President signed Decree “On Ensuring Democratic, Fair and Transparent Local Elections on October 25, 2015”

The President signed Decree “On Ensuring Democratic, Fair and Transparent Local Elections on October 25, 2015”. The Decree was signed in the course of the meeting of the Regional Development Council.

The President called the main task of local authorities to conduct elections under the highest European standards and OSCE requirements. “Our duty is to ensure holding of these elections at the same level as the presidential or parliamentary elections,” the President emphasized.

“Each head of administration is responsible not for the result of pro-presidential political force, but for the purity of the process and compliance of all phases of the elections with the OSCE standards and rules of European political culture. The overall situation in the country after the elections is much more important for me than the results of specific parties,” Petro Poroshenko said.

The President noted that local elections will be held on the basis of the new Law: “Elections will be held on a proportional basis with open lists. The fate of every candidate will depend on voters, not leaders of the party. Thus, it is a resolute and major step in the fight against political corruption,” the Head of State emphasized.

The President stressed that the Law provides for the procedure of recalling a deputy for the first time in the history of Ukraine. The overall number of members of local councils all over the country is being reduced significantly. The election of mayors will be held in two rounds in the cities with more than 90 thousand voters. There should be at least 30% of female candidates.

The Head of State noted that increasing the powers of local authorities requires greater responsibility on the part of voters.

The President urged all political parties to refrain from crossing the “red lines”, which may restrict the ability of the country to confront foreign threats, in the election competition. “When someone is not satisfied with the actions of the authorities, he should come to the polling station with a bulletin, not to the square with a grenade. That is why the elections were invented,” the President emphasized.

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