French Newspaper Enrolls Cats in Republican Board Elections Report: Putin’s War Fails to Gain Majority Among Russians

The French Sunday newspaper “Le Journal du Dimanche” claims to have registered two cats as voters in the governing elections of the conservative Républicains. It was shown that party members could vote multiple times without much effort, the newspaper reported on Sunday. A source within the party told the newspaper: “Technically you are entitled to three votes per person. There are false members everywhere.”

According to the report, an internal Conservative Party document states that members’ identities are only verified if personal information, such as address or phone number, is used four or more times for different members. The number of supporters had increased sharply in the run-up to the board election. The newspaper itself registered the two cats with the details of a journalist who joined for the trial. At no time were the identities checked.

The party initially did not respond to a request. Some 91,000 members of France’s former People’s Party have been called up since Saturday night to elect a new board. A result is expected after counting the votes from Sunday evening. The favorite is MP Éric Ciotti from the right wing of the party. The liberal-conservative senator Bruno Retailleau and secretary-general Aurélien Pradié, representatives of the social right, also participate. If none of the three wins an absolute majority, the party wants to hold a second round next weekend.

According to a report by the platform “Mediapart”, a dog was already on the electoral roll during the party’s internal selection of the conservative candidate for the presidential election. (sda/dpa)