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On 15 March, so-called presidential elections began in russia. The election is considered a formality, since the winner is already known - with a 99% probability he will once again become dictator vladimir putin. We tell you how the pseudo-voting is taking place and why putin expects to stay at the helm of russia for a long time.

Elections in russia? No! putin's election

On Friday, 15 March, pseudo-elections started on the territory of the russian federation, which will run until 17 March. It is worth noting that voting in russia for the first time will last three days, instead of one. All these nuances were worked out long before the elections. Back in 2020, the country adopted amendments to the constitution, which, in particular, "nullified" the terms of putin and again gave him the opportunity to sit as president of the russian federation for two more terms, that is, until 2036.

It is worth noting that before the constitutional reforms, putin had served as president for three terms, with president dmitry medvedev serving as president on call in between. This mechanism was probably also worked out in advance, since during medvedev's presidency, putin still remained in power and was the country's prime minister.

The current "elections" are also being innovated, with remote electronic voting being used there for the first time. This feature should help the kremlin achieve a record turnout and, according to the BBC, use administrative resources to push not only budgetary employees but also employees of state corporations to vote online.

In addition to the russian territory, voting is also taking place in the occupied territories of Ukraine - in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions, which are not fully controlled by russian troops, and in Crimea, which is under full occupation. 

How elections are held in the occupation

Voting in the occupied territories looks completely absurd if you look at them through the eyes of democracy. Representatives of the election commission together with the military come to potential voters and force people, at gunpoint, to vote for candidates.

According to Meduza, the putin administration wants to see a high turnout of 70-80 per cent. According to the latest data from the VTsIOM state centre, the estimated figure is 71%.

The results of the presidential election are expected to be announced on 28 March.

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Elections without opposition

russia has seen no ruler other than putin for more than two decades. The russian dictator has done many atrocities in office, including invading Ukraine, assassinating opposition politicians and suppressing democracy, including taking over the information field. 

It is noteworthy that the outcome of the election has already been decided: even before the race began, the russian dictator's spokesman, dmitry peskov, stated that putin "has "no competitors and cannot have any competitors.

According to media reports, putin has at best three competitors in this election, with less than 20 per cent of citizens ready to support them. There is no specific opposition to the dictator on the ballot. As the russian media wrote, the only opposition figure who could compete with putin was Alexei Navalny, but he was assassinated by the kremlin regime on the eve of the election.

Amid all the absurdity of the russian elections, european council president Charles Michel sarcastically "congratulated" russian dictator vladimir putin on his victory in the "elections," even though the russian authorities had only announced the beginning of the elections.

"I would like to congratulate vladimir putin on his convincing victory in the elections that start today. Without opposition. Without freedom. Without choice," he wrote.

What's after the election?

The elections will not be the line for any changes in russia's domestic and foreign policy, experts believe. Moreover, the war situation may even worsen.

Expectations of a new wave of mobilisation are very widespread, and such a prospect looks "quite realistic", since the preconditions for a new mobilisation are there and putin is not softening his military rhetoric. For example, an order from russian defence minister sergei shoigu on additional mobilisation after the presidential election recently appeared online. However, the russian authorities quickly denied this information, calling it "fake".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also recently spoke about increased mobilisation in russia. According to him, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry has such data.

In a report to Zelenskyy, the head of intelligence, Kirill Budanov, also said that russia had plans not only against Ukraine but also against other countries. By the way, the Western media have long been discussing the scenario of a clash between russia and NATO in the Baltic region. But the most interesting thing is that Western officials also admit that russia may soon start a war against European countries.

Experts are sure that internal problems in the russian federation will also continue. They admit that after the elections in rf will raise taxes, because the war against Ukraine "someone has to pay".

We remind you! NATO countries may soon face russian aggression. However, a series of events, including the US elections, may affect the outcome of the confrontation between russia and the West. What actions can be expected from the kremlin in the near future and whether Europe is ready for it, read here. 

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