Russia President Election 2024: Voting continues for the second day today for the presidential election in Russia

On Saturday, the second day of voting for the presidential elections in Russia, voters are exercising their franchise. Voting will continue till 8 pm on Sunday. It is considered certain that President Vladimir Putin will get another additional term of 6 years in the elections. Voting is going on in 11 ‘time zones’ of the country as well as in polling stations located in illegally occupied areas of Ukraine. The election comes after two years of repression of independent media and reputable rights groups, giving Putin complete control over the political system, and Moscow’s war against Ukraine. The election results will be declared on May 7.

The elections are being held at a time when Putin’s political opponents are either in jail or in exile abroad. Alexei Navalny, Putin’s staunchest opponent and most vocal opposition leader, died in an Arctic prison in February at the age of 47. Officials said voting was continuing in an orderly manner. But despite tight controls, at least half a dozen cases of vandalism at polling stations have been reported. Leaders of western countries have called this election a mockery of democracy.

European Council President congratulates Putin in advance on election victory

European Council President Charles Michel sarcastically congratulated Putin on Friday on his “resounding victory” in the election, for which voting is technically still underway. “No opposition, no freedom, no choice,” he wrote on the social media platform ‘X’. Meanwhile, in the absence of late opposition leader Navalny, his team faces the difficult challenge of maintaining the opposition movement against Putin. The team’s movement “Noon Against Putin” has been supported by Navalny’s wife Yulia Navalnaya. They are urging voters to vote to show their dissatisfaction with Putin’s rule and the war against Ukraine.

Navalnaya said in a video address, “This (movement) is a very simple and safe action, it cannot be stopped. This will give millions of people the opportunity to come face to face with their like-minded allies and help them realize that we are not alone, there are people with us who are against war, against corruption and against anarchy.”