Kremlin pre-set State Duma election results in occupied Ukrainian territories — 70% for Putin's party

The administration of Russian President Vladimir Putin has predetermined the outcome of the upcoming State Duma elections in occupied Ukrainian territories: turnout is expected to reach at least 65-70%, with support for the ruling "United Russia" party pegged at no less than 70%. This was reported by the Kyiv Post, citing Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation.

Russia's State Duma elections will take place from September 18 to 20, and Moscow intends to organize voting in the occupied parts of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, which Russia annexed following sham referendums. Kyiv considers any voting in these territories illegitimate, and Moscow has yet to establish full control over any of the four regions.

According to Kovalenko, the Kremlin plans to use the vote to create an illusion of public support for the occupation and its attempts to annex Ukrainian land. "Elections in the temporarily occupied territories are entirely illegal, but Russia wants to use them to legitimize the occupation," he said.

Court bars Yabloko from the elections

Kovalenko also noted that the Kremlin only allows parties that support the continuation of military operations against Ukraine to take part in the elections. This is precisely why Russia's Supreme Court on Monday barred the liberal Yabloko party from running and revoked its registration — just days after it had been approved by the Central Election Commission.

The ruling followed a lawsuit filed by the pro-Kremlin nationalist party Rodina, which accused Yabloko of violating election law, including receiving prohibited financial assistance. Yabloko has denied the allegations and said it would appeal the decision. Party chairman Nikolai Rybakov stressed that there are no legal grounds for excluding the party from the race.

"Putin sees no future without war"

Yabloko remained the only officially registered Russian party opposing the war and calling for a truce and a shift toward negotiations over Ukraine. In Kovalenko's view, sidelining the party is an attempt to prevent anti-war voters from demonstrating their real level of support at the ballot box.

"This is yet another proof that Putin's regime sees no future without war and is afraid of any display of support for anti-war sentiment," he said. According to him, discontent over the continuing war is growing in Russia's regions and is even noticeable in Moscow, especially amid rumors of a possible new wave of mobilization.

"Those in Russia who oppose the war are currently unable to organize large-scale street demonstrations," Kovalenko noted, drawing a parallel with the final years of the USSR, when economic troubles and private criticism of the authorities accumulated but did not immediately translate into organized public protests.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz