Voters go to the polls early in Russia's presidential election
(Baonghean.vn) - The official time for Russian people to vote will be from March 15 to 17.
Early voting in the presidential election has begun in some regions of Russia. In general, early voting is available to citizens living in hard-to-reach areas of the country. Additionally, sailors who plan to go to sea on official election days can vote early starting on February 25.
Under the rules, precincts can begin early voting after February 25 but must complete it by March 14.
Russia's Central Election Commission told TASS news agency that in the previous presidential election in 2018, about 180,000 people voted early and 31,000 people voted at polling stations on ships at sea.
Voting has already begun in the Zaporozhye Region for those living near the front lines. In the Kherson Region, early voting will begin on February 27, while in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, voting will begin on March 10 and 11. These are four regions that were once part of Ukraine and have held referendums to become part of Russia in 2022.
The main voting period for the 2024 Russian presidential election will take place from March 15 to 17. This is the first time a presidential election has been held over multiple days in the country. This format has been used in other elections in Russia after being first introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Four candidates have been approved by the Russian Central Election Commission to run for president: Vladislav Davankov of the New People's Party, incumbent President Vladimir Putin, who is running as an independent and is the leading candidate, Leonid Slutsky of the nationalist LDPR party, and Nikolay Kharitonov of the Communist Party.
