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Russia‘s was marred on Friday by a series of disruptions, including dye being poured into ballot boxes, a Molotov cocktail thrown at a polling station in President Putin‘s home town, and reported cyber attacks.
Millions of Russians cast their ballots across the country’s 11 time zones at the start of a three-day election that is almost certain to hand Putin six more years at the helm of the world’s largest country by territory. Amid the Ukraine war, Putin, 71, dominates Russia’s political landscape and none of the other three candidates on the ballot paper presents any credible challenge.
At least nine were arrested for pouring dye into ballot boxes and arson attacks. In Moscow, Russian-annexed Crimea, and the Caucasus region of Karachayevo-Cherkessia, several people poured green liquid into ballot boxes – an apparent nod to the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who in 2017 was attacked by an assailant splashing green disinfectant in his face.
A Molotov cocktail was thrown at a polling station in St Petersburg, and a 21-year-old woman arrested. Arson attempts were recorded at polling stations in Moscow and Siberia. Russia’s electoral commission chief, Ella Pamfilova, said perpetrators of such acts faced up to five years in prison. The electoral commission said there had been over 10,000 attacks on electronic voting systems but that they had endured.
As of 17:20 Moscow time, country-wide turnout was high, at around 24.6%. Demand for electronic voting was so high the system was overloaded. The Kremlin says Putin, in power as president or prime minister since the last day of 1999, will win as he commands broad support.
The shadow of the Ukraine war fell across the election, with what Putin said was repeated shelling of Russia’s western regions and an attempt by Ukrainian proxies to cross into Russian territory in two Russian regions. Putin said there had been four attacks on the Belgorod region and one on the Kursk region by armed Ukrainian proxies numbering about 2,500. He said they had 35 tanks and 40 armoured vehicles and that 60% of the soldiers were killed. “These strikes by the enemy do not and will not go unpunished,” Putin said. “This is an attempt to interfere with the presidential election.”
Over 114 million Russians are eligible to vote, including in what Moscow calls its “new territories” – four regions of Ukraine that its forces only partly control. Ukraine says the staging of polls there is illegal and void.
Millions of Russians cast their ballots across the country’s 11 time zones at the start of a three-day election that is almost certain to hand Putin six more years at the helm of the world’s largest country by territory. Amid the Ukraine war, Putin, 71, dominates Russia’s political landscape and none of the other three candidates on the ballot paper presents any credible challenge.
At least nine were arrested for pouring dye into ballot boxes and arson attacks. In Moscow, Russian-annexed Crimea, and the Caucasus region of Karachayevo-Cherkessia, several people poured green liquid into ballot boxes – an apparent nod to the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who in 2017 was attacked by an assailant splashing green disinfectant in his face.
A Molotov cocktail was thrown at a polling station in St Petersburg, and a 21-year-old woman arrested. Arson attempts were recorded at polling stations in Moscow and Siberia. Russia’s electoral commission chief, Ella Pamfilova, said perpetrators of such acts faced up to five years in prison. The electoral commission said there had been over 10,000 attacks on electronic voting systems but that they had endured.
As of 17:20 Moscow time, country-wide turnout was high, at around 24.6%. Demand for electronic voting was so high the system was overloaded. The Kremlin says Putin, in power as president or prime minister since the last day of 1999, will win as he commands broad support.
The shadow of the Ukraine war fell across the election, with what Putin said was repeated shelling of Russia’s western regions and an attempt by Ukrainian proxies to cross into Russian territory in two Russian regions. Putin said there had been four attacks on the Belgorod region and one on the Kursk region by armed Ukrainian proxies numbering about 2,500. He said they had 35 tanks and 40 armoured vehicles and that 60% of the soldiers were killed. “These strikes by the enemy do not and will not go unpunished,” Putin said. “This is an attempt to interfere with the presidential election.”
Over 114 million Russians are eligible to vote, including in what Moscow calls its “new territories” – four regions of Ukraine that its forces only partly control. Ukraine says the staging of polls there is illegal and void.
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