Election Monitors Find 'Unprecedented' Levels Of Fraud In Russian Vote On Extending Putin's Rule [View all]

[Dennis Donovan]

https://www.rferl.org/a/election-monitors-find-unprecedented-levels-of-fraud-in-russian-vote-on-extending-putin-s-rule/30704791.html


A woman wears a face mask with the message "No To Putin" during a protest against the constitutional amendments in St. Petersburg on July 1.

July 03, 2020 15:29 GMT

By Matthew Luxmoore - Radio Free Europe (Calling on in transit... )

MOSCOW -- The day President Vladimir Putin declared victory in a vote on constitutional changes that pave the way for him to rule Russia until 2036, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov called it a "triumphal referendum on confidence" in the former KGB officer, who has already spent over two decades in power.

<snip>

Kremlin critics were struck by the retroactive portrayal of the vote as a plebiscite on support for Putin. His name was almost completely absent from promotional material and TV reports urging Russians to vote on a package of over 200 constitutional amendments -- despite the fact that a clause allowing Putin to reset term limits was among the most consequential of them.

They also alleged that the high turnout and support reflected in official results were engineered to conform with targets set down well in advance by Putin's aides.

"The updated 'results' are fake and a huge lie," said opposition politician Aleksei Navalny, who had called on his supporters to boycott the vote. "They have nothing in common with the opinion of Russia's citizens."

Claims of fraud quickly began mounting.

</snip>

Yeah... um, perhaps we should look at this as a cautionary tale come November?