Russia:polls open for three day parliamentary election

In Russia, voting in a three-day parliamentary election has bagan. Parliamentary and local polls in the world’s largest country spread across 11 time zones began on Friday,  residents of the Far Eastern Chukotka and Kamchatka regions were gearing up to cast their ballots. Voters will be able to cast ballots through to Sunday. There is no expectation that United Russia, the party devoted to President Vladimir Putin, will lose its dominance of the State Duma, the elected lower house of parliament. Putin has urged Russians to vote, saying in a video message that the “election of new composition is undoubtedly the most important event in the life of our society and country”.

It is widely expected that the ruling United Russia party will secure a convincing victory in the elections. Around 108 million voters in Russia have a right to elect 450 members of the State Duma for a five-year term. United Russia has been the dominant party in the country for decades and it enthusiastically supports Putin although he has run as an independent candidate since 2018. United Russia currently has a majority with 334 seats. Half of the Duma’s seats are filled by direct election. With 14 parties fielding candidates for half of the Duma’s 450 seats that are chosen by party list, the election has a veneer of being genuinely competitive.