KIEV, July 27 – President Viktor Yanukovych on Tuesday signed into law a controversial bill that makes it more difficult – or even impossible - for smaller parties to nominate candidates for local elections to be held October 31.

The move opens the way for opposition leaders to appeal the legislation at the Constitutional Court, which, however, is believed to be controlled by Yanukovych’s allies.

“This legislation deprives millions of people of the right to elect or be elected,” Arseniy Yatseniuk, the leader of the opposition Front of Changes, said in a statement. “It stops the democratic processes in Ukraine.”

The Front is one of the parties that will be hurt by the legislation as many of its local branches throughout Ukraine have been registered less than a year ago.

The law allows nominating candidates only by those local branches that have been registered more than a year ago. The law also prohibits independent candidates from nominating themselves, stipulating that only parties can nominate them.

The Regions Party may use the legislation as a test to see whether similar electoral changes can be made ahead of the general election due in 2012, a move that may eventually cement Yanukovych’s grip on power for years to come.

Yatseniuk, who finished No. 4 at the presidential election in February, has been seeking to capitalize on his popularity in many regions by nominating candidates at the local elections.

The law is believed to benefit established parties, giving an unfair advantage to Yanukovych-led Regions party, Yatseniuk said.

“Using this logic, the next step must be changing the constitution to declare that the Regions Party is only leading and directing political party in Ukraine,” Yatseniuk said.

Yatseniuk said he will appeal the legislation at the Constitutional Court, but asked for political support from other lawmakers. At least 50 lawmakers must sign the petition to appeal the legislation.

“I call on the democratic forces to join the appeal and to submit it as soon as possible to the Constitutional Court,” Yatseniuk said.

Besides smaller parties, the legislation is also restricting political blocs from running at the election, for example the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, led by former prime minister and the leader of the largest opposition group.

Tymoshenko earlier indicated that she will use her party, Batkivshchyna, or Fatherland, which is a less popular group, to nominate candidates at the local elections.

Tymoshenko, who controls more than 120 lawmakers in the 450-seat Parliament, said earlier this month the legislating was unconstitutional and said her group will appeal it.

But Tymoshenko has been refusing to cooperate with Yatseniuk, whom she sees as a rival party running that may reduce her party’s strength in western regions of Ukraine. (tl/ez)