Voting begins in election Putin is bound to win » Capital News
Voting has begun in Russia’s presidential election, which is all but certain to hand Vladimir Putin another six years in power.
Ballots will be cast over three days, even though the result is not in doubt as he has no credible opponent.
Polling stations opened in the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia’s easternmost region, at 08:00 local time on Friday (20:00 GMT on Thursday) and will finally close in the westernmost Kaliningrad enclave at 20:00 on Sunday.
It was at a grand military awards ceremony last December that Vladimir Putin told the Russian public he would stand for the presidency for a fifth time.
The solemn event, held in one of the Kremlin’s most opulent halls, Russia’s leader of 24 years had just handed out top honours to soldiers who had taken part in Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.
He was chatting with a small group of participants when the commander of a pro-Russian unit in Ukraine’s occupied Donetsk region approached him.
“We need you, Russia needs you!” declared Lt-Col Artyom Zhoga, asking him to run as a candidate in Russia’s forthcoming presidential election. Everyone voiced their support.
Vladimir Putin nodded: “Now is the time for making decisions. I will be running for the post of president of the Russian Federation.”
His spokesman Dmitry Peskov later described the decision to run as “absolutely spontaneous”. But the Kremlin rarely leaves its choreography to chance.
Instead, straight away its well-oiled media machine swung into action.
“Support for the president transcends party support alone,” reported one correspondent on state TV news later that week. “Vladimir Putin is the people’s candidate!”
He has already been in power in Russia longer than any ruler since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.
He has been president since 2000, apart from four years as prime minister because of a two-term limit imposed by the Russian constitution.
He has since changed the rules to give himself a clean slate to run again in 2024 by “switching back to zero” his previous terms. That means he could also run for another six-year term in 2030, when he will turn 78.
During his time in office, Vladimir Putin has methodically tightened his grip on power so no real threat to his rule exists any longer. His most outspoken critics are either dead, in jail or in exile.
Yet the Kremlin remains determined to give a semblance of legitimacy to Russia’s electoral process.
Although there can be no doubt about the ultimate election result, the authorities seem to care greatly about a high turnout, which will be presented as evidence of his popular mandate.
Turnout at the last election in 2018 was officially 68%, but international observers reported several cases of ballot-stuffing.
This year, voting will be easier than ever before, ending on Sunday.
In the parts of occupied Ukraine that Russia calls its “new regions”, polls opened 10 days before election day, and social media has been awash with ads urging people to go vote.
When they do, they will be faced with a choice – or rather a semblance of one.
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