Sergey Yugov: Presidential elections in the republic of North Osetia: Dzasokhov is the ultimate winner

The new President of the republic of North Osetia is the old one – Alexander Dzasokhov. For the time being there has been 95% of the ballot papers processed. Pursuant to the information from the central electoral committee of the republic, 56.22% of the electorate voted for Dzasokhov, while the second place is taken by deputy chairman of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry, Stanislav Suanov – 28% of votes. The remaining 5% of the papers will not be able to change anything.

On the whole, the pre-electing campaign in the republic was remarkable for the numerous scandals, especially against the background of the relatively calm presidential elections in other republics of the Northern Caucasus – Adygeya and Kabardino-Balkaria. As one of the reporters mentioned, “the development of the pre-election fight looked like the news from the war.” The discrediting material, meetings, threats were excessive.

Dzasokhov’s major opponent, Khetagurov was withdrawn from the registration, pursuant to the decision, made at the session of the Supreme Court of the republic. Khetagurov and his team did not acknowledge that, of course, and continued the fight for the presidency. Khetagurov was charged of the use of the fake passport during the registration procedure – the passport, which had been lost in 1991. The court also found that Khetagurov concealed his own income and property, as well as the fact that he indicated his residing address as the city of Vladikavkaz, although it was Moscow.

It became known three days before the elections that another candidacy for the position of the president of the republic - a communist – refused to participate in the elections. The first secretary of the regional department of the Russian Communist Party, Tamerlan Tsomayev gave up the pre-election race, being supported by his followers.

Nevertheless, the incumbent president of the republic, Alexander Dzasokhov, was the leader by the actual date of the elections, January 27. Furthermore, Dzasokhov enjoyed the support of the federal center: Alexander Abramov, deputy chief of the Russian presidential administration, declared at the meeting with the members of the North-Osetia government that the presidential administration would support the incumbent president of the republic.

Sergey Yugov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Dmitry Sudakov

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/01/28/36176.html