№ 1 - 2005
Shevchenko Yu.D.
Institutionalization of the State Duma and the Third Convocation Deputies’ Participation in the 2003 Parliamentary Elections

The article contains analysis of the reelection strategies applied by deputies of the third convocation Duma in December, 2003. Particular attention is given to incumbents’ interaction with political parties in the districts and in the proportional part of the electoral system, as well as to the election returns’ dependence on the deputies’ preceding parliamentary activities. The author makes an attempt to estimate, on the basis of the data received, the level of the Duma’s institutional development. In her conclusion, such developments as: the slowing down of deputies’ rotation; the reelection campaign becoming a matter of routine; the Duma’s inner organizational structure being carried into the electoral process; and, finally, deputies’ showing themselves highly adaptive to a current political situation, — testify to successful institutionalization of the Russian parliament.