<sup>Vladimir Vasiliev, Gennady Zyuganov and Vladimir Zhirinovsky/ Photo: RIA Novosti</sup>
Before the upcoming elections to the state Duma political parties are stepping up resources to enlist the support of the voter. However, the financial capacities of parties are very different. While one parties harder finding money on the campaign, others continue a comfortable existence in the first place — at the expense of public funds, and sometimes due to hidden foreign funding. The experts of the movement “Voice” has published a report on the sources of funding of parties. “Novaya Gazeta” found the study very interesting and recounts the most interesting.
State aid
Now count on financial support from the budget can party garnered in the last Federal election more than 3% of the vote. Such a barrier among non-parliamentary parties then crossed the only “Apple”. The amount is calculated as follows: one vote in the last election gives political Association 110 rubles of state funds for the year. (Until 2015, this amount was halved.)
The authors of the report point out the huge difference in income: “United Russia” in 2015 “earned” (apart from budget) of 5.18 billion rubles, which is 3-4 times more KPRF, LDPR or “Fair Russia” and 20 times the income of the “Yabloko” (250 million).
The income of the “Yabloko” consist of 99% of budget funds, while less than all of the state depends on United Russia — budget funds make up only 68.6 percent of its income.
Donors
By law, funds to the party funds you can list of public organizations, foundations, private sponsors and companies. The latter often become members of the scheme so-called “hidden budget financing”. What does it mean?
In the financial reports of political organizations often included the names of the companies who voluntarily donate considerable sums for the benefit of the party. But it is not always the case only in support of the course. Experts “Voices” found a pattern: become a donor of the ruling party, the company begins to receive regular contracts.
For example, “VSK Mordoviya”, donated in 2015 to Fund “United Russia of 500 thousand roubles, has received contracts totaling more than 1.7 billion rubles. But “Magnitogorsk iron and steel works, a subsidiary of the company which was donated to the United Russia 30 million rubles for 2015-2016 received 91 state contract for a total amount of about of 5.16 billion rubles.
According to “the Voice”, donation to the funds of political parties is about 10% of the amount of the future contract.
“Among donors of the political parties received in 2015-2016 relatively large contracts, more than 90% accounted for the company, donor of the “United Russia”, the remaining funds were a legal entity, the funding parties, “Patriotic” orientation”, — experts say “Voice”.
Foreign funding and private donations
In addition to grants and subsidies, some parties, contrary to the law, continue to receive money from foreign companies, say the authors of the report. Externally, these transactions look legal: registered in Russia, the company donates money to the party that is not against the law, but sometimes it turns out that their ultimate owners in different times were offshore companies registered in Cyprus, British virgin Islands and the us state of Delaware.
Covert foreign funding, experts believe “the Voice” received “United Russia” “Fair Russia” and “Rodina”. In fairness, in some cases, a portion of the funds or the entire amount received was returned to the donors. For example, of the 17 million who sacrificed subsidiary company group TNS Energo, 2 million was later returned to one of the donors, and “Mangazeya Stroy” party of power back 1 million of the three million donations.
Large donations to the party sometimes get from very specific individuals. some of this paragraph is the main source of income: for example, 80% (25 million) funds the “Civil platform” are the donations of citizens. From them 5 people (including the political strategist of the party) have listed 21 million rubles. There are other cases. For example, 19-year-old resident of Yekaterinburg was supported by the Communist party a contribution of 100 thousand rubles, and in Karelia from three people at the age of 21-22 years, donated the “Fair Russia” for 73 thousand rubles.
What the money is spent
Experts are sure that the usedonmost of the money the party needs to spend directly on political activities: advocacy, campaigning, public events, etc. But in reality from all parties eligible to nominate candidates without collection of signatures, this model holds only the liberal democratic party, which for this purpose has allocated nearly 68% of its budget.
More willing party spend on the maintenance of Central authorities and regional offices. Last year on staff salaries and office rent, the Communist party has spent almost 60% of all the money (860 million), “United Russia” focused on the regions and contributed to their content of 45.5% (versus 13.2% on the salary of Federal leadership).
Most in percentage (55.6 per cent) from the budget of the party on the content of the governing bodies were spent by the party “Parnassus”. In campaign and party activities, the management has allocated 4.8% (472 thousand rubles).
DIRECT SPEECH
Stanislaw Andreychuk,
leading expert of the movement “Voice”, head of the regional centre “transparency international” in Barnaul:
“Very direct relationship between the amount held by a party, and their chances in the upcoming elections we will not see, because in addition to party Finance, there are campaign funds that are generated additionally. For example, “Civil force” according to the documents, last year was not a penny of income, and if not for the election Fund, you do not quite understand, what money it will go to the polls.
The “United Russia” and the Communist party a large amount of “stash” for this year, and it gives them additional opportunities. In the long-term benefits from the “rich” parties, of course, there are those who receives money from the budget over the next four to five years will be able to expand the unit to include the regional network. But how to spend the money — at the discretion of each party.
Still, the big problem is covert foreign funding of parties, but in comparison with last year the situation has improved.
After our last year’s report, the CEC recognized that in some moments they are flawed and have started to take action. As far as I know, the current composition of the CEC started this topic: signed a contract with Rosfinmonitoring, Federal tax service. The CEC has no powers to personally verify such information, and their previous responses, we realized that the tax worked with financial documents of the parties carelessly.
Alas, the law has no clear provisions on how and where you can spend the party funds. I think it is a matter for great debate about how legal this is: why are we, the citizens, who pay taxes, have to chip in money for the maintenance of the leadership of several parties, for which we even the election didn’t vote? It turns out that we, albeit against our will, but at their own expense are the fruit of bureaucracy in political organizations.”
