Russia’s Central Election Commission reported higher-than-normal turnout and clear victories in regional elections that ended Sunday. But election observers have raised serious doubts about the Kremlin’s role.
For him, the three-day regional and local elections were a test of the extent to which Russian society can be controlled and mobilized after a two-and-a-half-year war of aggression against Ukraine. “We see very confident, high results for the party in power,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday. Accordingly, President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party pushed through all its candidates for governorships. There was a lesson for the head of the northern city of St. Petersburg, Alexander Beglov. He received a result of almost 60 percent, the weakest among the top regional positions.
Returning officer: ‘People showed courage’
However, observers such as the electoral rights organization Golos (Voice), which is classified as a foreign agent, pointed out that the state power had artificially increased participation. Ella Pamfilova, the election director appointed by Putin, made it seem as if the threat against Russia, the invasion of Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region, had spurred on voters. “The people showed maximum responsibility, courage and real civic courage,” Pamfilova said in Moscow. In the hometown of President Vladimir Putin, observers complained about a particularly large number of election manipulations.
In the presidential elections, the pressure on voters was greater
Many state employers urged their employees to vote, Golos election observers wrote in their report. However, the pressure was less intense than in the March presidential election, when Putin claimed a record 88.5 percent approval rating.
Golos criticized the fact that voting machines, which are difficult to control, are increasingly being used instead of ballots. Candidates who were not loyal to the line were not allowed to run. The state-controlled media prevented debate on real issues during the election campaign. For Russian voters, the elections have become a “fun procedure with online voting, contests, game figures and cake at the polling station.”
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
