Maidan did not help: Yekaterinburg will have a strong mayor instead of an elected one
The Legislative Assembly of the Sverdlovsk Region today adopted a law proposed by Governor Evgeny Kuvaishev to abolish direct mayoral elections in Yekaterinburg. 42 deputies voted for, 4 against.
Now candidates will be selected by a special commission and submitted to the legislative assembly for voting. But in the end, a “strong mayor” will be elected who will lead the city government.
The current mayor of Yekaterinburg, Evgeny Roizman, opposes the new system. The day before, he held a rally to which he invited such liberal politicians as Dmitry Gudkov and Leonid Volkov from Moscow.
About two thousand young supporters of Alexei Navalny also took part in the rally.
“Since I am the elected head of the city, I am regularly in contact with residents, I understand the mood. And if you pass this law, it will be perceived as doubts about the mental capabilities of the residents of Yekaterinburg. It would be an insult,” Roizman said.
He stated that he does not intend to submit his candidacy for any commission.
The popularly elected mayor not only failed to convince the deputies, but also caused irritation. So Vyacheslav Wegner, who prepared an alternative bill, decided to withdraw it after the rally.
“I withdrew my law because the circus that took place yesterday, when several bunny boys gathered, introduced their own law... Boys, where have you been for five years? Yes, the governor decided that the situation needed to be corrected. He has the right to do so. I also introduced an alternative project, but at yesterday’s meeting there wasn’t even a word about the fact that we need a strong mayor. I’m not participating in this circus,” Wegner said.
English version :: Read in English : Maidan didn't help: Yekaterinburg will have a strong mayor instead of the elected one