There are also protests in Switzerland – an overview of the elections in Russia Ukraine wants to scare the Russians with these combat robots

There are also protests in Switzerland

There were protests against Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in front of the Russian Consulate General in Geneva. The line, which included many young Russians, stretched orderly across the sidewalk, a correspondent from the Keystone-SDA news agency reported. Some carried posters against Putin and the war in Ukraine. Nearly 2,000 Russians from French-speaking Switzerland were expected to vote in Geneva.

Most of the people present around noon followed the call from the widow of the late opposition figure Alexei Navalny to go to the polls at the same time around noon.

Julija Navalnaya in Berlin

Yulia Navalnaya, human rights activist and widow of dead Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny, also took part in protests against Russian President Vladimir Putin near his country’s embassy in Berlin on Sunday.

She currently lives in Germany and stood in front of the Russian embassy in Berlin this election Sunday.

According to police, about 800 people took part in the demonstration. The demonstrators shouted: “Victory for Ukraine! Freedom for Russia!”, “Navalny is a hero of Russia” and “Putin is illegitimate”. Numerous people waved flags in white-blue-white, which, according to the participants, should be the new colors of a free Russia.

Call on the Russians in advance to write her husband’s name on the ballot papers. These therefore lose their validity. However, this protest is not expected to have a major impact on the outcome.

The Russian Election Commission reports a higher turnout than in 2018

According to election officials, turnout in Russia’s presidential election, which was overshadowed by allegations of rigging, is now higher than in the previous election in 2018. As of 11:50 a.m. CET, the figure had risen from 67.54 percent. exceeded, the Russian state news agency Tass Appeal reported to the electoral commission on Sunday, the last day of voting. The election for Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin’s fifth term in office will last three days for the first time, which should also give more voters the opportunity to cast their votes. In addition, millions of people voted online, reportedly partly under pressure from authorities.

According to the election commission in Moscow, 7.74 million people used online voting by 11 a.m. CET, corresponding to a turnout of almost seven percent. Turnout at polling stations in the country was reported to be around 66.07 percent by early afternoon. Despite Putin’s seemingly certain victory, the power apparatus is aiming for a high turnout to make the outcome appear legitimate.

However, critics complain that the online process in particular is easy to manipulate. Independent observers criticize the fact that many citizens have been pushed to the polls by their state employers. Not only is this illegal, but requesting voters to send photos of the ballot to superiors is also considered a violation of voting rights.

The first results should be available on Sunday evening, with meaningful results only on Monday.

Absurd images from polling stations

Absurd images from polling stations in Russia are currently circulating on social media. A video shows an armed soldier storming into the voting booths to see what is happening there. Another video shows a woman being detained by a police officer for having green paint on her.

After drone attack: Moscow airports limit flights

After the drone attacks, Moscow’s Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky airports are restricting their flight movements for security reasons, Die Welt reports. Five Ukrainian drones were shot down near Moscow.

Two people were killed by rocket fire in the regional capital Belgorod.

Dozens of people arrested during anti-Kremel protests

The Ovd-Info portal reports on Twitter that dozens of people have been arrested during anti-Kremlin protests in Russia. In total, the Ovd-Info organization counted about fifty arrests across the country at the beginning of Sunday afternoon, almost half of which were in the city of Kazan. People in Moscow and St. Petersburg were also affected. Many of them wanted to stand in long lines in front of their polling stations at exactly 12:00 local time to show their dissatisfaction with the re-election of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, which was planned by the power apparatus and classified by the opposition as undemocratic.

Opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin, who was excluded from the presidential elections, also took part in the peaceful ‘Lunch against Putin’ protest in the Russian capital. At the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, where there is a polling station, he was greeted with great applause by students, as shown in a video he published on Telegram on Sunday. “I think you still have a chance to vote for me,” he told the crowd. He announced that he would publish his own post-election surveys after the polls closed.

Yulia Navalnaya calls for silent protest

Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, has called for a silent protest. Russians should write Navalny’s name on the ballots. The votes therefore lose their validity. The action is called Noon Against Putin and took place at 12:00 (local time).

According to civil rights activists, arrests also took place outside the protests. An activist in St. Petersburg was arrested by security forces as she left her home. Some people were released from police custody after a while.

(cmu with material from sda)