Russia votes amid war as Kremlin tightens power grip

Voting has begun in Russia’s parliamentary election with the main Kremlin party poised to retain its overwhelming grip on the lower house. The political and economic environment, however, has visibly changed four-and-a-half years after the start of Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine.

Economic costs are increasing, Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and logistical facilities have inflicted massive damage, and the public, which no longer sees the fighting as something distant, is increasingly nervous and fatigued by the war.

The challenges have prompted the Kremlin to stifle even the slightest signs of dissent ahead of the election — the first since Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Voting started Friday in Russia’s Far East.

It’s a challenging time for Russia to hold a parliamentary election, even one whose outcome is all but assured.

The economic and political climate has been seriously affected by four-and-a-half years of full-fledged war with Ukraine. Swarms of enemy drones have inflicted massive damage on Russian oil refineries and logistical facilities. The public, which no longer sees the fighting as something distant, is increasingly nervous.

United Russia, the main Kremlin party, is poised to keep its overwhelming grip on the State Duma alongside a few other parties aligned with President Vladimir Putin. Still, authorities have tightened control over the first wartime balloting for the lower chamber of parliament since the 2022 full-scale invasion.

The Kremlin stifled even the slightest signs of dissent before three days of voting that began Friday in Russia’s Far East. The only party that dared to criticise the war was unceremoniously removed from the ballot, and a few anti-war politicians have been imprisoned or forced to flee abroad.

For the first time, the election includes residents of four Ukrainian regions that Moscow illegally annexed after the invasion. Ukraine has called the vote illegal.

With the result predetermined and Putin’s political dominance under no immediate threat, analysts say the Kremlin sees the election as a key effort to mobilise public support for the war and legitimise its action.

“Your choice and resolve will once again demonstrate that millions of people stand behind our fighters, that we are a united people, bound by shared values, historical memory, and love for the Motherland,” Putin said in an address before the vote.

A summer marked by Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes brought the war home for millions of Russians.

The attacks exacerbated problems for the economy, which has plunged into stagnation after an initial boost from massive military spending. The government raised taxes and increased domestic borrowing to keep the growing budget deficit under control.

Strikes on Russian oil refineries sparked a severe fuel crisis that peaked in June, eased for a few weeks and then returned in August.

Adding to the pain was a series of attacks on warehouses of online retailers Wildberries and Ozon. Hundreds of thousands of individual sellers lost their merchandise, sending a shock wave through the economy.