Dagestan, Ingushetia may waive direct gubernatorial elections - newspaper
MOSCOW. March 6 (Interfax) - Dagestan and Ingushetia may use the amendment that allows waiving direct gubernatorial elections, Kommersant reported on Wednesday.
"North Caucasian republics, among them Dagestan and Ingushetia, have decided not to hold direct votes," the newspaper quoted a source in the presidential administration.
The heads of nine Russian regions will be elected on September 8.
Sources told the newspaper earlier that "ethnic republics" could be the first to reject direct elections.
Following the resignation of Magomedsalam Magomedov, Dagestan has an acting head, Ramazan Abdulatipov. The office of Ingushetia head Yunus-Bek Yevkurov ends this fall.
Abdulatipov said earlier that Dagestan might elect its head in a direct ballot in due time.
The State Duma passed in the first reading on January 23 a bill, which allowed Russian regions to choose the gubernatorial election method, either a direct vote or a decision of the regional parliament.
The procedure shall be defined with a regional law.
