Russians vote in first parliamentary election since Ukraine war

Voters across Russia have begun casting ballots in the country's first parliamentary election since the war in Ukraine started. Millions of citizens are heading to polling stations to choose new members of the 450-seat State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament. The voting process, spanning September 18, 19 and 20, will continue for three days at both traditional polling stations and online. Voters will use two separate ballots, selecting half of the Duma's 450 seats from party lists and the other half from individual candidates in single-mandate districts. Russians will also vote in local elections, choosing governors in 11 regions and regional assembly members in 39 regions. Polling has been stretched over three days to boost turnout among 111 million eligible voters, with electronic voting also permitted. The elections extend to territories Russia has occupied in Ukraine.

United Russia expected to keep its grip

Eleven parties are competing for Duma seats. The ruling United Russia party, which backs President Vladimir Putin, is expected to preserve its dominant position in parliament. Founded in 2001 through the merger of Kremlin-friendly parties, United Russia has supported Putin and controlled parliament ever since. The party won more than two-thirds of the Duma's seats in the 2021 elections. Its candidate list is led by heavyweights including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Russia's top diplomat for 22 years, and Moscow's powerful mayor Sergey Sobyanin. In an effort to bring new faces into a party seen as made up of bureaucrats, its third-highest ranking official is war correspondent Yevgeny Poddubny, who was seriously wounded by a Ukrainian drone. United Russia members have pledged to support the Kremlin's war effort, which it calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine, and Putin's objectives.

Opposition and anti-war voices sidelined

Several small "opposition" parties that vote in line with the government on all key issues are also expected to retain their presence in parliament. The Kremlin hopes the first parliamentary elections since the war in Ukraine began in 2022 will highlight public support for the conflict and give its actions a veneer of "legitimacy." Meanwhile, the liberal Yabloko party, the only political group to dare criticize the war, was removed from the election list last month by Russia's Supreme Court, leaving it with only a few candidates in single-mandate races. Some anti-war politicians were jailed or forced to flee abroad ahead of the campaign.

Geopolitical significance of the vote

This election, Russia's first since the war in Ukraine started, is being watched closely not only for its domestic implications but also for its impact on international balances. While Western countries continue to criticize the process as falling short of democratic standards, the Kremlin aims to present the vote as a sign of public support for its war policies. The results are expected to shape Russia's domestic and foreign policy for the next five years.