Vandalism escalates in Russian presidential election: ballot boxes targeted
The number of incidents involving damage to ballot boxes and voting slips during the ongoing presidential elections in Russia is increasing. In Moscow, two incidents occurred in two locations: a ballot box was set on fire and voting slips were soaked with ink.
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Many statements made by Russian media or representatives of the authorities are elements of propaganda. Such reports are part of the information war waged by the Russian Federation.
In Russia, ballot boxes are being massively set on fire and doused with paint. Such cases have already been recorded in both small towns and in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Presidential elections in Russia: numerous reports
The Astra channel published a video from St. Petersburg. It shows a woman throwing a Molotov cocktail towards an election station. The propaganda website Fontanka.ru claims that the student from the "Far East of Russia was tasked with setting fire to the station by a Ukrainian Telegram channel".
"In just 20 minutes, three attempts to set fire to election stations in Russia were revealed. Besides St. Petersburg, attempts were made to set fire to ballot boxes in Moscow and Khanty-Mansiysk.
Video of the attempted arson of a ballot box in Moscow:
According to the channels SotaVision and Baza, the incident took place at polling station No. 1527 in the southeastern part of Moscow.
"The surveillance video shows a woman pouring flammable liquid into a voting booth and then filming the entire incident with her phone" - we read.
"A woman doused a ballot box with green paint in one of the polling stations in Simferopol" - reports the channel Baza. "The woman has already been detained, and the event was confirmed by the press service of the Crimean Election Commission".
"Ballot boxes were filled with green paint and ink in several polling stations - in Moscow, Voronezh, and Karachay-Cherkessia. All three 'saboteurs' were detained, and criminal proceedings under Article 141 have already been initiated against the first one" - describes further incidents the channel Mash.
Set fire to a voting slip
In Moscow, a woman set her voting slip on fire after writing on it, "Give me back my husband".
Destruction of voting slips also took place in the city of Volzhsky in the Volgograd Oblast.
An attempt to set fire to a station also occurred in Mytishchi. "An elderly woman tried to set a ballot box on fire with gasoline" - reports Astra.
An attempt to set a ballot box on fire also took place in the city of Kogalym in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug.
"Scum use other scum"
The head of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, Ella Pamfilova, reacted to the attacks. "When this chain started, we warned all the commissions to engage the Russian guard to strengthen the security of ballot boxes," she stated. She accused "persons from abroad" who were "not aware of the criminal responsibility for their acts".
"They admitted they did it for money. All assailants have been detained, the Investigative Committee is initiating criminal cases, and the assailants face up to five years in prison. Scum use other scum," thundered Pamfilova.
The turnout in the presidential elections across the entire Russian Federation at 1 PM GMT was 23.02 percent.
