The Russian criminal regime is exerting pressure on residents of occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast, forcing them to take part in sham presidential elections. To receive more votes in favor of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Russian troops in the region have organized “home voting.”
Russia will hold presidential elections between 15 March and 17 March. In December, the country’s Central Election Commission passed a resolution to hold the vote in March 2024, not only in regions of Russia but also in Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories.
“Russians are pressuring residents of the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, forcing them to take part in the so-called presidential elections through organized ‘home voting.’
Members of the ‘election commissions’ are conducting door-to-door visits to residents of the occupied cities of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, escorted by armed military personnel,” Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council reports.
According to the Center, occupiers have already conducted “home voting” in villages across the region and are planning to use the tactic in cities. Russian occupation authorities have also informed employees of the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant that “election commission” members will visit their homes.
“Voting” at gunpoint has nothing to do with democracy or fair elections, emphasized the Center for Countering Disinformation.
The Center said that any “elections” organized in the temporarily occupied territories are illegal and constitute a gross violation of international law.
The US and other countries have condemned the holding of Russian presidential “elections” in Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories. Additionally, the US Department of State has stated that all individuals involved in this process, including those who have agreed to act as international observers, must face justice and be held accountable.
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