Kabardino-Balkaria, just as Dagestan, Ingushetia and North Ossetia, has cancelled direct elections of its leader. According to amendments passed by the parliament in the first reading, the leader of the republic will be elected by the parliament. The second and third readings were set for early 2014.
Arsen Maremukov, Head of the parliamentary committee, said that the president will present three candidates, one of which will then be elected by the parliament.
Ahmet Yarlykapov, a member of the Center for Ethnipolitical Studies of the Institute for Ethnology and Anthropology of the RAS, told Vestnik Kavkaza that the decision had nothing to do with resignation of Kabardino-Balkarian Leader Arsen Kanokov about three weeks ago. Yuri Kokov, Head of the All-Russian Institute for Upgrade of Qualification of Staff of the Russian Interior Ministry, is the Acting Leader of Kabardino-Balkaria. Kanokov is a senator of Kabardino-Balkaria at the Federation Council.
Yarlykapov noted that there were no reasons to cancel direct votes. He reminded that the strict system of control in the republic was inherited from President Valery Kokov with minor changes. The expert predicts that Kokov, should he be among the candidates, will have 98% chance for winning the elections in the parliament.
