Head of the Republic of Crimea

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Head of the Republic of Crimea
  • Глава Республики Крым (Russian)
  • Глава Республіки Крим (Ukrainian)
  • Къырым Джумхурийетининъ Къафа (Crimean Tatar)
Emblem of Crimea.svg
Sergey Aksyonov (2018).jpg
Incumbent
Sergey Aksyonov
since 9 October 2014 [lower-alpha 1]
Executive branch of the Republic of Crimea
Style
Type
Residence Simferopol
Nominator President of the Russian Federation
Appointer State Council
Term length Five years,
no more than two consecutive terms
Precursor President of Crimea
Formation9 October 2014
First holder Sergey Aksyonov
Website Official website

The Head of the Republic of Crimea is the highest official and the head of the executive power of the Republic of Crimea; an internationally disputed federal subject of the Russian Federation located on the Crimean Peninsula. [1]

Contents

Crimean Head's policy is to ensure compliance with the Constitution and federal laws and the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Crimea, as well as the equality of nations and the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, and the preservation of the coordinated functioning of state bodies of the Republic. Person under 30 cannot be a head of the Republic.

Term of office is five years. Appointed by the State Council of the Republic on nomination of President of the Russian Federation. Interim Head of the Republic is appointed directly by President.

The current Head of the Republic Sergey Aksyonov was elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2019.

History

Background

The Crimean Peninsula, historically part of Imperial Russia and later an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, was ceded in 1954 to Ukraine, which administered it until the political-military crisis of 2014.

Ukrainian President of Crimea

Under Ukrainian rule, an equivalent post, named President of the Republic of Crimea (Russian : Президент Республики Крым, romanized: Prezident Respubliki Krym), was provided by the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Crimea (de facto a special statute), with jurisdiction over the autonomous city of Sevastopol too. [2] The first presidential elections took place in 1994, won by the pro-Russian separatist Yuriy Meshkov (leader of a coalition named "Russia"), but on 17 March 1995 the Ukrainian parliament, as part of a wider process of reduction of the Crimean autonomy, abolished both the statute and the post of President of Crimea. [2]

From Ukraine to the Russian Federation

Map of protests by region, indicating the severity of the unrest at its peak 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine.png
Map of protests by region, indicating the severity of the unrest at its peak

In the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution led by pro-European nationalists hostile to Russia, [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] the rise of pro-Russian protests in Ukraine led to the so-called Crimean crisis, parallel to the outbreak of the war in Donbass. On 6 March 2014, the authorities of the autonomous republic of Crimea, emulated the next day by the authorities of Sevastopol, unilaterally declared independence from Ukraine, formalizing it jointly with a request to join the Russian Federation on March 11. [8] [9] [10] On March 17, following a joint status referendum held on March 16, the Supreme Council of Crimea and Sevastopol City Council confirmed the independence of the newly unified Republic of Crimea from Ukraine and the popular will to join Russia. [11] On the same day, Russia recognized the Republic of Crimea as a sovereign state. [12] [13] [14]

Left to right: Aksyonov, Konstantinov, Putin and Chaly, signing the Treaty on Accession of the Republic of Crimea to Russia Putin with Vladimir Konstantinov, Sergey Aksyonov and Alexey Chaly 4.jpeg
Left to right: Aksyonov, Konstantinov, Putin and Chaly, signing the Treaty on Accession of the Republic of Crimea to Russia

On March 18, the Crimean authorities finally signed the accession treaty to the Russian Federation, thus forming the Crimean Federal District, subsequently merged into the Southern Federal District. [15] [16]

On April 11, the State Council of the Republic of Crimea consequently ratified a new constitution, providing for the post of Head of the Republic of Crimea, effective from April 14 of the same year. [lower-alpha 1]

Eligibility and authorities

Under article 62 of the Constitution of the Republic of Crimea, approved by the State Council on 11 April 2014 and entered into force the following day, any Russian citizen who has reached the age of thirty can take up the post, provided that he has not been subjected to restrictions on civil and political rights.

Formally a head of state, the head of the republic is actually a governor, subordinate to the president of the Russian Federation; he oversees the executive, and has the right to legislative initiative in the State Council, which he can also convene exceptionally.

Furthermore, under articles 61-65 of the Constitution, he:

Presidential appointed officials

List

No.PortraitNamePolitical partyElectionTerm of officePrime minister(s)Ref.
Took officeLeft officeTime in office
1 Sergey Aksyonov (2018).jpg Sergey Aksyonov
(1972-11-26) November 26, 1972 (age 51)
United Russia [lower-alpha 2] 14 April 2014 [lower-alpha 1] 9 October 2014178 daysHimself
2014 9 October 201419 September 20194 years, 345 days
2019 20 September 2019Incumbent4 years, 72 days Yury Gotsanyuk

Elections

2014

Three candidates were nominated for the election: [17]

CandidatePartyVotes%
Sergey Aksyonov United Russia 75100
Gennady Narayev United Russia 00
Alexander Terentyev A Just Russia 00
Total75100
Source:ТАСС

2019

2019 inauguration of Aksyonov 2019 Inauguration of Sergey Aksyonov (2019-09-20) 03.jpg
2019 inauguration of Aksyonov

Three candidates were nominated for the election: [18]

CandidatePartyVotes%
Sergey Aksyonov United Russia 7498.7
Pavel Shperov Liberal Democratic Party 00
Sergey Bogatyrenko Communist Party 00
Total75100
Source:ТАСС

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 The transition from the Ukrainian to the Russian administration lasted a week, from 11 to 18 March 2014. In those days, although formally it was still part of Ukraine, the Crimean government already legislated autonomously, with acts recognized by the Russian Federation, but not Ukraine. Sergey Aksyonov, the last president of the Ukrainian Council of Ministers of Crimea, continued to exercise his role as interim head of government until April 14, and then governed as interim head of state until the elections held on 9 October 2014, in which his mandate was confirmed.
  2. Appointed by the President of the Russian Federation as interim Head of Republic.

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