Russian soldiers are pressuring people to vote in occupied Ukraine as Vladimir Putin seeks to cement his illegal annexations and create a facade of legitimacy.
A local resident casts her vote into a mobile ballot box next to a security member during Russia's presidential election in the Donetsk Region in Russian-controlled Ukraine on Saturday. Ukrainians in territories occupied by the Russian military are being forced to vote in the Russian presidential election under the watch of heavily armed, masked soldiers who are accompanying election officials going from house to house, knocking on doors as they seek to compel participation.
Vladimir Putin, who has ruled as Russia’s supreme political leader since Dec. 31, 1999 — repeatedly finding ways to defy term limits to stay in power — is guaranteed to win the election, giving him another six-year term. The election, even for legitimate voters in Russia, offers no genuine democratic choice with the Kremlin blocking genuine opposition candidates from the ballot, controlling media coverage and, critics allege, falsifying results.
One Mariupol resident interview by The Washington Post by phone said, “People couldn’t care less about the elections because everyone understands perfectly well that it’s elections without choice.” The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the risk of retribution by Russian authorities.“There's no rule of law, no courts, nothing. Everything is broken,” the person said. “Against this backdrop, the presidential elections are just some kind of crap.
Some Ukrainians who were being collared by election teams were asked to fill out ballots in front of pro-Kremlin election workers and soldiers — violating the principle of a secret ballot, a core tenet of democracy.One woman in occupied Energodar, Zaporizhzhia region, was at her daughter’s apartment when she heard a knock on the door.
Natalia Petrenko, head of the military administration for Shulhyne, an occupied village in Luhansk region said that election officials and soldiers were targeting vulnerable elderly pensioners in house-to-house visits. Petrenko has left the occupied area but is in touch with friends and family still living in the village.
“I wish these elections would pass quickly,” the niece told her aunt in a message reviewed by The Post, adding that Ukrainian artillery fire had given the Russians an excuse to force people to vote at home. “They’re aiming at the military,” she wrote, “But when those rockets fly over, it’s so terrifying. I cover my ears but fear still overwhelms me. And now, I’m crying again.
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