Across Russia, the outcome of this weekend’s State Duma elections seems like a foregone conclusion: a sweep for the ruling United Russia party and its allies. Even so, in St. Petersburg, one woman plans to head to her local polling station as an election observer from the liberal Yabloko party.
“What’s the motivation? A sense of responsibility, I guess — the feeling that this is one part of changing Russia that’s actually within my power,” the woman told The Moscow Times on condition of anonymity due to the risk of political reprisal.
“I can’t overthrow anyone, but I can show up and observe,” she said.
In what experts say is Russia’s most restricted parliamentary elections to date, voters have few options to make a difference at the ballot box. Instead, many are finding other ways to push back against United Russia and show their distrust in the process, from subtle acts of protest to organized voting strategies and poll watching.
The Kremlin has sidelined nearly all real opponents, making it almost impossible to vote for candidates who truly challenge the status quo. With United Russia facing some of its lowest approval ratings since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin is framing the election as a referendum on the war effort, now in its fifth year.
For authorities, showing strong public backing is critical. A crackdown on anti-war candidates ahead of the vote peaked in August when Russia’s Supreme Court barred Yabloko, the only party campaigning on a pro-peace platform, from the party-list ballot.
