The “smart voting” strategy promoted by Navalny urges the Russians to vote in support of the same candidate on any ballot most capable of any ballot coming from United Russia.
Navalny unveiled “smart voting” during local elections in Moscow and St. Petersburg in 2018, with United Russia having dozens of seats in regional bodies. This year, Navalny HQ recently took the stage under the slogan “Nulliz United Russia” in explicit reference to a constitutional amendment resetting the clock on Vladimir Putin’s presidential count.
United Russia’s popularity declined over the years as its image has been extracted by unpopular reforms and corruption scandals, many of them exposed by the Navy’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, Navalny gave himself a tacit understanding to the party – “rogues” And the party of thieves. “
This is the first election after Russia voted on controversial constitutional amendments that gave Putin the basis to remain in power until 2036.
The vote lasted three days between September 11–13 in an effort to limit congestion and prevent the spread of coronaviruses, a practice adopted in July on constitutional amendments, which independent watchdog organizations say has reduced transparency in voting and this It is easy to make votes false.
The vote could turn into a popularity test for the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party in a year that has seen controversial epidemic backlash from Russian regional leaders, record-low approval ratings for Putin, and pressure from local people unrest in some regions . As the arrest of popular governor Sergei Fergal in the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk.
Protests in Khabarovsk lasted weeks since July. Fergal, often referred to as the local “governor of the public”, defeated the Kremlin-backed candidate from the ruling United Russia Party in a surprise single round in the 2018 local elections. He refused to be out of the race under pressure from his Kremlin-backed rival, who offered to serve him as his deputy. He is portrayed as disinterested towards Putin and the Kremlin.
The outcome of this vote could serve as a bell for the 2021 elections at the head of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, where United Russia controls most of the seats.
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