Russia election 2024

Between manipulation and suppression

Election workers in Moscow counting the votes

(Bild: APA/AFP/Alexander NEMENOV)

The presidential election in Russia has begun and the Russian people have until Sunday to cast their votes. There is actually no doubt that the incumbent will win. Susanne Scholl, former ORF correspondent in Russia, also knows: "You can't really call it an election at all."

Russian government polls predict that Putin, who has been in power for almost a quarter of a century and is seeking a fifth term in office, will already receive more than 80 percent of the vote. This would be his best result to date. His three rival candidates are not only considered to have no chance, but sometimes even support the incumbent directly and toe the Kremlin line.

Boris Nadezhdin wanted to challenge incumbent Vladimir Putin in the presidential election in Russia. But the electoral commission officially rejected him. "He was not admitted because he was the only one who actually tried to make something like an opposition, in very soft tones and without any attack. But still against Putin. And Putin won't allow that. There must be no opposition to him in the country," says Susanne Scholl.

Interview with former ORF correspondent Susanne Scholl

(Bild: krone.tv )

Even before the official elections in Russia, "voting" has begun in the Ukrainian regions of Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhia, some of which are occupied by Russia. But is this even allowed?

"Actually, they are Ukrainian citizens, but not for Putin anymore. Putin has started to distribute Russian passports there and he wants to add these areas to Russia at all costs. And that is what he is doing. The question is whether the people in Ukraine will play along," says Scholl.

Election starts with protests
In St. Petersburg, a 20-year-old woman tried to throw a Molotov cocktail at a polling station on Friday, according to the electoral authorities. Attacks were also announced on several social media platforms by unknown persons using videos. Susanne Scholl knows that this is of course a serious threat, especially as there have already been terrible attacks in Moscow. "Hostage-takings, bombs in the metro, we've seen it all," says the former ORF correspondent.