Voting opened Friday in Russia's three-day parliamentary election, which President Vladimir Putin has framed as a test of public support for the war in Ukraine. The vote comes as fuel shortages, high interest rates, a labour crunch and Western sanctions squeeze the Russian economy, with the ruling United Russia party expected to keep its dominance in a tightly controlled contest.
Voting got underway on Friday in a three-day parliamentary election that Putin has cast as a barometer of support for the war. It is the first parliamentary election since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The vote will determine the make-up of the 450-seat State Duma, the lower house of parliament, and is widely expected to see the pro-Putin United Russia party retain its dominance in a tightly controlled political system. Most anti-war candidates have been excluded from the ballot after the Supreme Court ruled that the liberal Yabloko party, which wants a ceasefire, had breached electoral rules, though some Yabloko candidates are still running in individual constituencies.
Putin told the nation ahead of the vote that casting a ballot would help secure Russia's victory in Ukraine and demonstrate national resolve against external pressure. The Kremlin says national unity matters because Ukraine's intelligence services and other enemies are trying to stir unrest inside Russia.
Yet the vote lands as opinion polls show some Russians growing more anxious about how the conflict affects them. Fuel shortages caused by Ukrainian drone strikes are roiling parts of the country, and businesses are contending with high interest rates, a labour crunch and Western sanctions — a mix authorities are expected to use the vote to gauge the depth of society's war weariness.
Source: Investing.com/Reuters
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