NBC News spoke to people outside a polling station in the Russian capital Friday. With the winner in no doubt, the Kremlin will instead be looking to turnout as a measure of public support for President Vladimir Putin’s extended rule across this vast country.
A steady stream of voters arrived at a polling station in the heart of Russia’s capital on this crisp, sunny Friday morning to cast their votes in a three-day presidential election.
With the winner in no doubt, the Kremlin will instead be looking to turnout as a measure of public support for Vladimir Putin’s extended rule across this vast country.
Muscovites began filing into this school-turned-voting site as soon as the doors opened at 8 a.m. local time (1 a.m. ET). At the entrance stood a large banner emblazoned with the letter “V” in the colors of the Russian flag and stating the dates of this Friday-Sunday election.
Authorities have used the Latin letters “V” and “Z” as unofficial symbols for its war in Ukraine, which has entered its third year with the country’s military advancing on the battlefield.
The Kremlin’s expanded control over Russian life means there is no true opposition to Putin, with the three other men on the ballot representing parties loyal to Putin who only campaigned sparingly.
In other news, Russians started burning polling stations, so they’re voting with fire now.
What would happen if they all write in for Navalny?
“Weird way to spell ‘Vladimir Putin’ but we’ll count it”
Eh, one facist white supremecist warmonger is as good as the next.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
At the entrance stood a large banner emblazoned with the letter “V” in the colors of the Russian flag and stating the dates of this Friday-Sunday election.
But a big turnout would be seen as legitimizing the war and would help to solidify the notion that the country is united around its president, already the longest serving Kremlin leader since Stalin.
On the eve of the election, Putin, 71, appealed to feelings of patriotism and duty in a special video message, as he encouraged people to vote and demonstrate unity.
The most likely protest will center on a call for Russians to show up en masse at polling stations at noon on Sunday in all of the country’s 11 time zones, in a silent display of their discontent.
Perhaps most troublesome for the Kremlin, this week has seen a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks across large parts of Russia, and attempts at a land incursion in the two border regions of Belgorod and Kursk that appear to be ongoing after several days of fighting.
For the first time, people in the four occupied regions of Ukraine annexed by Russia will also be included, in violation of international law in a move condemned by Kyiv and its Western allies.
The original article contains 735 words, the summary contains 208 words. Saved 72%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
