 "A woman casts a ballot into a mobile ballot box at her home in Russia as members of an electoral commission visit local residents during the early voting in Russia's presidential election in the settlement of Dubovoe in the Belgorod Region, Russia. Reuters")
The Russian presidential elections are underway, with President Vladimir Putin poised to secure another victory, and to be inaugurated in May. If he wins, Putin will cling power in the Eastern European country for another six-year term, becoming the Kremlin’s longest-serving leader since Joseph Stalin.
Voting will also take place in regions of Ukraine that are currently under Russian control and subject to Russian law. According to AFP, Kiev increased its aerial bombardment of Russian regions near their shared border in the run-up to the election.
Additionally, voting is also being held in Kerala for the elections.
But why.
60 Russian nationals cast their votes
On Thursday around 60 Russians, those settled in the state and tourists, cast their advance vote for the Russian presidential elections at a booth specifically arranged at the Honorary Consulate of the Russian Federation, Russian House, in Thiruvananthapuram, reports The New Indian Express.
These voters mostly came from Ernakulam, Varkala, and Kovalam to participate in the election.
The voting has been facilitated not only at the Russian House but also at various diplomatic missions across the country, including the Russian Embassy in Delhi and consulates in cities such as Chennai, Mumbai, Calcutta, Goa and Koodankulam.
According to The New Indian Express, the voting process in Thiruvananthapuram used traditional paper ballots, with completed ballots sent back to Moscow via diplomatic channel from Chennai, which will be counted after the final phase of polling for the presidential election ends in Russia on 17 March.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThis is the third time the Consulate of Russian Federation is hosting polling for the Russian presidential elections, Ratheesh Nair, Honorary Consul of Russia and Director of the Russian House in Thiruvananthapuram, told ANI, expressing gratitude to Russian citizens in Kerala for their cooperation in the polling process.
“Prior to this, polling had been carried out twice for both the Russian presidential and parliamentary elections. Also this time, the number of voters surpasses expectations.” added Nair.
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In an interview with ANI, Nair said, “This is actually for Russian nationalists staying here and also for the tourists. We are happy to associate with the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation. I am very grateful to the Russian citizens in Kerala for their cooperation and enthusiasm to cast votes in the process of electing their new president.”
The election process was overseen by Sergey Azarov, Senior Consul at the Russian Consulate General, Chennai; Vice Consul Alexey Taresov Ratheesh C Nair and Russian House Deputy Director Kavitha Nair.
‘Thankful for the opportunity’
“This election is so special for me.”
“And this time there are high chances for an increase in vote for the Communist party in Russia as many of them are supporting and laying faith up on it,” said Olga, who is settled in the city, as reported by The New Indian Express.
Olga also predicted that Putin may win this time as the president.
Ulia, a Russian citizen, said fellow natives in Kerala are thankful to the Russian house and consulate general in India for providing them the opportunity to cast votes in the Presidential polls.
Speaking to ANI, Ulia said, “Everyone who came today is Russian citizens either residing permanently in India or are visiting tourists. Everybody is thankful and happy to come here and participate in the election, which is very important for every citizen. This is our responsibility. So, we are thankful to the Russian house and the consulate general in India from Chennai for providing this chance.”
Russia is all set to hold presidential elections from 15-17 March. Russian citizens will vote from Friday until Sunday across the 11 time zones of the country. Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) approved only three candidates to oppose Russian president Vladimir Putin, CNN reported.
The three candidates standing against Putin are Leonid Slutsky of the Liberal Democratic Party, Vladislav Davankov of the New People Party and Nikolay Kharitonov of the Communist Party. All three men are thought to be satisfactorily pro-Kremlin and none is against Russia’s military action against Ukraine.
As the majority of opposition candidates are either dead, jailed, exiled, barred from running or simply token figures, a victory for Putin is all but guaranteed, according to a CNN report.
Putin’s re-election would extend his rule until at least 2030. Following constitutional changes in 2020, he would then be able to run again and potentially stay in power until 2036.
With inputs from ANI