Corruption in the election process: the concept and features

Corruption in the election process should be understood as a socially negative phenomenon distorting real political competition. It consists in the use of one's status, official position for personal or group interests to illegally benefit in the preparation and conduct of elections and referenda, and to provide or promise such benefits and advantages. Corruption in the election process is characterised by a certain set of features allowing to distinguish it from other similar ones. Unfortunately, the features of corruption in the election process as an independent form of corruption have hardly been developed in the national scientific and legal literature. Corruption in the election process can be characterized by the following set of features: the sphere of existence; specific list of subjects; the use of the status, official posititon by the election process subjects; the purpose characteristic for this type of corruption relations. The sphere of existence of this type of corruption is the election process itself both in its narrow and broad definition. The purpose of corruption in the election process as well as corruption in general is to receive benefits of tangible and intangible nature. Different subjects of corruption in the election process want benefits and advantages of various kinds. The candidate, for instance, seeks victory in the election (although today it is common for registering candidates not to seek election, but to discredit the main competitor of "their" candidate). Representatives of financial-industrial groups and organised crime that finance the campaign of a candidate or an election association expect the winner to follow agreements or just to support them in the future. Voters as subjects of bribery pursue the aim of obtaining material benefit here and now probably thinking that the money, food packages, etc. is the little they can actually get from using their right to vote, as opposed to the candidate or party promises of improvements in the future.

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