Russians crowd polling stations in apparent Putin protest

Russians crowded outside polling stations at noon on Sunday, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin as he stands poised to extend his rule of nearly a quarter of a century for six more years after a relentless crackdown on dissent.

The three-day election that began on Friday has taken place in a tightly controlled environment where there are no real alternatives to Mr Putin, no public criticism of him or his war in Ukraine.

His fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic prison last month, and other critics are either in jail or in exile.

Mr Navalny’s associates had urged those unhappy with Mr Putin or the war to protest by coming to the polls at noon on Sunday – a strategy endorsed by Mr Navalny shortly before his death.

Team Navalny described it as a success, releasing pictures and videos of people crowding near polling stations in cities across Russia around noon.

Mr Putin, 71, faces three token election rivals from Kremlin-friendly parties who have refrained from any criticism of his 24-year rule or his full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago.

The president has boasted of Russian battlefield successes in the period leading up to the vote, but a major Ukrainian drone attack across Russia on Sunday was once again a reminder of challenges faced by the Kremlin.

The Russian Defence Ministry reported that it took down more than 40 Ukrainian drones overnight and on Sunday, including four near the Russian capital.

The local governor of Russia’s Belgorod region said that Ukrainian shelling on Sunday killed a man and a 16-year-old girl, and wounded at least 12 other people. The governor also said two people died during attacks the previous day.

The Defence Ministry said it took down more than 100 Ukrainian drones and missiles across the whole weekend.

Mr Putin previously described the attacks as an attempt by Ukraine to frighten residents and derail Russia’s presidential election, saying they “won’t be left unpunished.”

Russia’s wartime economy has proven resilient, expanding despite bruising Western sanctions. The Russian defence industry has served as a key growth engine, working around the clock to churn out missiles, tanks and ammunition.

Voting is taking place at polling stations across the vast country’s 11 time zones, in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine, and online. More than 60% of eligible voters had cast ballots as of early Sunday.

Stanislav Andreychuk, co-chair of the Golos independent election watchdog, said that pressure on voters from police had reached unprecedented levels.

Russians, he said in a social media post, were searched at polling stations, their ballots checked before they were cast, and police demanded a ballot box was opened to remove a ballot.

“It’s the first time in my life that I’ve seen such absurdities and I’ve been observing elections for 20 years,” Mr Andreychuk wrote on the messaging app Telegram.

Dmitry Sergienko, who cast his ballot in Moscow, said he voted for Mr Putin: “I am happy with everything and want everything to continue as it is now.”

Olga Dymova, who also backed the president, said: “I am sure that our country will only move forward towards success.”

Another Moscow voter, who identified himself only by his first name Vadim, said he hopes for change, but added: “Unfortunately, it’s unlikely.”

Mr Navalny’s associates broadcast footage with comments by those who turned up at the polls at noon to protest against Mr Putin, their faces blurred to protect their identities.

Ivan Zhdanov, the head of Mr Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, said in a YouTube broadcast: “The action has achieved its goals. The action has shown that there is another Russia, there are people who stand against Putin.”

Another Navalny ally, Leonid Volkov, said the protest was meant to help unify and encourage those who oppose Mr Putin.

It was not possible to confirm if the voters shown lining up at polling stations in videos and photos released by Mr Navalny’s associates and some Russian media had responded to the protest call, or were merely there to vote amid a strong turnout.

Huge queues also formed around noon outside Russian diplomatic missions in Berlin, Paris, Milan and other cities with large Russian communities.

Mr Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, joined the line at the Russian Embassy in Berlin as some in the crowd applauded and chanted her name.

Boris Nadezhdin, a liberal politician who tried to join the race on an anti-war platform but was barred from running by election officials, voiced hope that many Russians cast their ballots against Mr Putin.

“I believe that the Russian people today have a chance to show their real attitude to what is happening by voting not for Putin, but for some other candidates or in some other way, which is exactly what I did,” he said after voting in Dolgoprudny, just outside Moscow.

In Russia, the OVD-Info group which monitors political arrests said more than 50 people were detained in 14 cities on Sunday.

Despite tight controls, several dozen cases of vandalism at polling stations were reported.

A woman was arrested in St Petersburg after she threw a firebomb at a polling station entrance, and several others were detained across the country for throwing green antiseptic or ink into ballot boxes.

Some Russian media also posted images of spoiled ballots posted by voters, with “killer and thief” inscribed on one, and “waiting for you in The Hague” written on another, in a reference to an arrest warrant issued for Mr Putin on war crimes charges related to his alleged responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.