Russia (and occupied Ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but Putin is all but certain to win

  • Voters will cast ballots through till Sunday at nearly 100,000 polling stations

Voters are heading to the polls in Russia today for a three-day presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin’s rule.

Members of the public will cast their ballots through till Sunday at nearly 100,000 polling stations across the vast country’s 11 time zones as well as in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine.

The first polling stations opened in Russia’s easternmost regions, Chukotka and Kamchatka, at 8am local time, with voters already pictured casting their ballots in some of Russia’s eastern-most cities.

The election holds little suspense since Putin, 71, who has been in power since 2000, is running for his fifth term virtually unchallenged. If voted in he will serve another six years as Russia’s president.

It is taking place amidst the backdrop of a ruthless crackdown that has crippled independent media and prominent rights groups and given Putin full control of the political system.

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A man casts a ballot at a polling station during a presidential election in the Pacific port city of Vladivostok, 3566 miles east of Moscow

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A cadet of the Maritime State University votes in the presidential election at a polling station in Vladivostok

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

The election holds little suspense since Putin (pictured), 71, who has been in power since 2000, is running for his fifth term virtually unchallenged

Putin’s political opponents are either in jail or in exile abroad, and the fiercest of them, Alexei Navalny, died in a remote Arctic penal colony recently.

READ MORE: French President Emmanuel Macron warns Russian victory in Ukraine will ‘reduce Europe’s credibility to zero’ as ‘continent’s security is at stake’ – and refuses to rule out deployment of Western troops

The three other candidates on the ballot are low-profile politicians from token opposition parties that toe the Kremlin’s line.

Observers have little to no expectation that the election will be free and fair. Beyond the fact that voters have been presented with little choice, the possibilities for independent monitoring are very limited.

Only registered candidates or state-backed advisory bodies can assign observers to polling stations, decreasing the likelihood of independent watchdogs.

With balloting over three days in nearly 100,000 polling stations in the country, any true monitoring is difficult anyway.

‘The elections in Russia as a whole are a sham. The Kremlin controls who’s on the ballot. The Kremlin controls how they can campaign,’ said Sam Greene, director for Democratic Resilience at the Center for European Policy Analysis in Washington.

Ukraine and the West have also condemned Russia for holding the vote in Ukrainian regions that Moscow’s forces have seized and occupied.

In many ways, Ukraine is at the heart of this election, political analysts and opposition figures say. They say Putin wants to use his all-but-assured electoral victory as evidence that the war and his handling of it enjoys widespread support.

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A Russian serviceman casts his ballot at an improvised polling station during early voting in a Moscow-controlled Ukrainian region

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A woman casts her ballot at a mobile polling station during early voting in Russia’s presidential election in Donetsk

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

Am elderly woman casts her vote at a polling station in Vladivostok. The first polling stations opened in Russia ‘s easternmost regions, Chukotka and Kamchatka, at 8am local time

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

Members of a local election commission, accompanied by a serviceman, prepare a mobile polling station during early voting in Russia’s presidential election in Donetsk

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A woman casts a ballot at a polling station during a presidential election in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the capital of Kamchatka Peninsula region

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

Volunteers prepare a polling station ahead of the presidential election in Moscow

Putin faces three challengers in the elections, none of which have criticised him. Two candidates who had hoped to run on a platform of calling for an end to the war in Ukraine were ruled ineligible.

‘The Kremlin banned two politicians from the ballot who sought to run on an antiwar agenda and attracted genuine – albeit not overwhelming – support, thus depriving the voters of any choice on the “main issue of Russia’s political agenda”,’ said political analyst Abbas Gallyamov, who used to work as Putin’s speechwriter.

Russia’s scattered opposition has urged those unhappy with Putin or the war to show up at the polls at noon on Sunday, the final day of voting, in protest. The strategy was endorsed by Navalny not long before his death.

His widow, Yulia Navalnaya said. ‘We need to use election day to show that we exist and there are many of us, we are actual, living, real people and we are against Putin.

‘What to do next is up to you. You can vote for any candidate except Putin. You could ruin your ballot.’

Opinion polls show Putin is supported by a majority of Russians – with one survey last month giving him 75 per cent support.

The poll was conducted by VCIOM – the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, which is owned by the Russian state.

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A man casts his ballot at a polling station during early voting for Russia’s presidential election in the village of Sennaya Guba, Republic of Karelia, on March 10

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A member of a local electoral commission installs an electronic voting machine at a polling station during preparations for the presidential election, in Moscow

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A woman casts her vote at a polling station in Mariupol within a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

Volunteers stand with puppets outside an early polling station in Donetsk, within a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine on Wednesday

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

Graffiti depicting Vladimir Putin in the Russian-annexed Crimea region of Ukraine. The slogan in red reads: ‘Crimea is our common property’

russia (and occupied ukraine) heads to the polls in national election - but putin is all but certain to win

A huge billboard encouraging people to vote in the Russian-controlled city of Luhansk, Ukraine

Putin yesterday appealed to voters in annexed parts of Ukraine to cast their votes in the presidential elections, saying voting on Russia’s future is a ‘demonstration of patriotic feeling’.

He directed his message to those living in occupied regions to cast their votes – particularly those who had voted for annexation by Russia in 2022 referendums denounced by Western countries as illegal.

In a video message broadcast on Thursday in Russia’s furthest eastern reaches, Mr Putin told voters to be united in casting their votes.

‘It is vital to underscore our cohesion and resolve and move forward together. Every vote you cast is valued and meaningful,’ he said. ‘I therefore ask you in the coming three days to exercise your right to vote.’

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