Workers' Movement for Social Guarantees "May"

The movement was largely populist and in a situation of ongoing economic crisis, it gained points, becoming the epicenter of protest sentiment. Using gaps in the legislation, "May" activists actually seized the offices of mayors, forcing them to have a "dialog" about non-payment of salaries and pensions. "May" also organized a tent encampment under the building of the Sverdlovsk Oblast government, made by schoolteachers from a number of municipalities.^[2] Governor Rossel refused to sign a protocol promising payments and preferred to go to work through the service entrance for a month and a half.^[3]

The first round showed the success of the May's strategy: Arkady Chernetsky dropped out of the fight. However, the second round did not bring any surprises; Eduard Rossel was re-elected for a third term with 63.07% of the vote.^[4]

The "Peace. Labour. May" electoral bloc was created by the "May" movement and the "Mining Ural" movement of Valery Trushnikov, deputy chairman of the Sverdlovsk Oblast Duma. It was registered by the Central Election Commission on 18 October 1999. An attempt of "May" to repeat the success and enter the federal politics failed. In the 1999 Russian legislative election the "Peace. Labour. May" bloc won 0.58% of the vote, taking 16th place out of 26.^[5] In the election of the Sverdlovsk Oblast Duma (26 March 2000) "May" gained 12.53% of the vote. Four years later, its successor, the Union of government employees of the Urals, led by Alexander Burkov, received 7.21% of the vote.^[6]