The 2010 Ukrainian local elections took place on 31 October 2010, two years before the 2012 general election. The voter turnout across Ukraine was about 50%, which is considered low in comparison to previous elections. The ruling Party of Regions won clear majorities in most regions and big cities throughout Ukraine (except in the west of the country), leaving Batkivshchyna far behind. The Ukrainian nationalistic party Svoboda achieved notable success in Eastern Galicia while Our Ukraine, a major force in Ukrainian politics in the early 21st century, met with total failure. The results were contested by opposition politicians and the Communist Party. Rescheduling of election date On February 16, 2010 the Verkhovna Rada (the parliament of Ukraine) cancelled all Ukrainian local election dates original set for May 30, 2010. A new date was not set but Members of Parliament expected new local elections in the spring of 2011. On April 2, 2010 the Verkhovna Rada set early local elections in a number of cities, towns and villages for June 20, 2010. According to opposition lawmaker Mykola Katerynchuk (Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc faction) the voting results proved that the Party of Regions intends to extend its influence over local government bodies, as the faction did not support elections in any of those regions where they already had a majority. In late April 2010, President Viktor Yanukovych expected local elections in Ukraine to take place in 2011. In late May 2010, Yanukovych stated that local elections would be held the following autumn. Yanukovych also called for these elections to be based on the majority representation system and stressed the need to adopt the relevant laws. On July 1, 2010, the Verkhovna Rada scheduled the election for Sunday, October 31, 2010. On July 11, lawmakers approved the bill on the procedure for holding the elections. A total of 259 out of 485 MPs registered voted to pass the bill. Before voting, the Bloc Yulia Tymoshenko faction walked out of parliament in protest against consideration the bill without taking into account the faction's proposals. The party is planning to challenge the law on local elections under a majority-proportional system at the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. This was done by the Front of Changes party on August 5, 2010. Besides Front of Changes and Bloc Yulia Tymoshenko Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Tigipko's Strong Ukraine party also stated the law violates the Constitution. Restrictions for political