Share this @internewscast.com

Russian lawmakers on Thursday set the date of the 2024 presidential election for March 17, moving Vladimir Putin closer to a fifth term in office.

Members of the Federation Council, Russia’s upper house of parliament, voted unanimously to approve a decree setting the date.

“In essence, this decision marks the start of the election campaign,” said Valentina Matviyenko, speaker of the Federation Council. Russia’s central election commission is to hold a meeting on the presidential campaign on Friday.

Putin, 71, hasn’t yet announced his intention to run again, but he is widely expected to do so in the coming days now that the date has been set.

Under constitutional reforms he orchestrated, he is eligible to seek two more six-year terms after his current one expires next year, potentially allowing him to remain in power until 2036.

Having established tight control over Russia’s political system, Putin’s victory is all but assured. Prominent critics who could challenge him on the ballot are either in jail or living abroad, and most independent media have been banned.

Neither the costly, drawn-out military campaign in Ukraine, nor a failed rebellion last summer by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin appear to have affected his high approval ratings reported by independent pollsters.

Who would challenge him on the ballot remains unclear. Two people have announced plans to run: former lawmaker Boris Nadezhdin, who holds a seat on a municipal council in the Moscow region, and Yekaterina Duntsova, a journalist and lawyer from the Tver region north of Moscow, who once was a member of a local legislature.

For both, getting on the ballot could be an uphill battle. Unless one of five political parties that have seats in the State Duma, Russia’s lower house, nominates them as their candidate, they would have to gather tens of thousands of signatures across multiple regions.

According to Russian election laws, candidates put forward by a party that is not represented in the State Duma or in at least a third of regional legislatures have to submit at least 100,000 signatures from 40 or more regions. Those running independently of any party would need a minimum of 300,000 signatures from 40 regions or more.

Those requirements apply to Putin as well, who has used different tactics over the years. He ran as an independent in 2018 and his campaign gathered signatures. In 2012, the Kremlin’s United Russia party nominated him, so he didn’t need them.

The central election commission plans online voting in addition to traditional paper ballots in about 30 Russian regions and is considering stretching the voting across three days -– a practice that was adopted during the pandemic and widely criticized by independent election monitors.

Those measures on top of restrictions on monitoring adopted in recent years will severely limit the possibility of independent observers, according to Stanislav Adnreychuk, co-chair of Golos, a prominent independent election monitoring group.

Andreychuk told The Associated Press that only registered candidates or state-backed advisory bodies, the Civic Chambers, can assign observers to polling stations, decreasing the likelihood of truly independent watchdogs. There is very little transparency with online voting, and if the balloting lasts for three days, it will be incredibly hard to cover nearly 100,000 polling stations in the country -– not to mention ensuring that ballots aren’t tampered with at night, he said.

“Regular monitoring (at the polls) poses the biggest problem at this point,” Andreychuk said.

“But we will be working in any case” he said of Golos’ plans, adding that they will conduct monitoring throughout the campaign and support activists who get to polling stations on election day.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like
42-year-old cold case closed after detectives crack into discovered confession

Detectives Solve 42-Year-Old Cold Case with Newly Uncovered Confession

A chilling chapter from 1983 has finally reached its conclusion in Nassau…
California police officer killed in crash on Interstate 8

Tragic Interstate 8 Collision Claims Life of California Police Officer

The La Mesa community is grappling with the tragic loss of Officer…
4 family members of Illinois governor candidate killed in Montana helicopter crash, campaign says

Tragedy Strikes: Four Relatives of Illinois Gubernatorial Candidate Perish in Montana Helicopter Crash, Campaign Reports

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — A tragic helicopter crash in Montana has claimed…
Taylor Swift earns first Songwriters Hall of Fame nomination in debut year of eligibility

Taylor Swift Celebrates Her First Nomination for Songwriters Hall of Fame in First Year of Eligibility

In a groundbreaking move, pop sensation Taylor Swift might soon make history…
Broadway musicians reach tentative labor deal, averting a strike

Broadway Musicians Secure Tentative Labor Agreement, Preventing Potential Strike

NEW YORK (AP) — In a significant move to keep the show…
Alphonso Joyner found guilty of murder in 71-year-old Woom Sing Tse's Chinatown, Chicago shooting death on 23rd Street

Alphonso Joyner Convicted in Fatal Shooting of 71-Year-Old Woom Sing Tse in Chinatown, Chicago

In a significant development from Chicago, a jury has convicted Alphonso Joyner…
Jacksonville Immigrant Rights Alliance denounces driver's license checkpoint plan for Green Cove Springs

Jacksonville Immigrant Rights Alliance Criticizes Proposed Driver’s License Checkpoint Initiative in Green Cove Springs

A proposed driver’s license checkpoint in Green Cove Springs, Florida, has sparked…
Eight Americans arrested in Bahamas after authorities discover 'high-powered weapons' cache, ammunition

Shocking Discovery: Eight Americans Detained in Bahamas for Hidden Arsenal of High-Powered Weapons

In a significant operation on Tuesday, eight American citizens were detained in…
ALDOT cooperating with investigators following shooting that led to Kimber Mills' death in central Alabama

ALDOT Collaborates with Authorities in Investigation of Fatal Shooting of Kimber Mills in Central Alabama

On Sunday morning, a tragic shooting occurred during a bonfire gathering in…
Texas mounted patrol caught on camera capturing illegal immigrant hiding in ranch brush near southern border

Texas Mounted Patrol Captures Undocumented Immigrant Concealed in Ranch Brush Near Southern Border, Caught on Camera

The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has released video footage showcasing…
Young girl who fell from Disney Dream cruise was too 'small' to set off man overboard alert: report

Report Indicates Young Girl’s Fall from Disney Dream Cruise Did Not Trigger Man Overboard Alert Due to Size Constraints

A tragic incident occurred when a 5-year-old girl fell 50 feet into…
President Donald Trump says he's terminating all trade negotiations with Canada over anti-tariff television advertisement campaign

Trump Halts Trade Talks with Canada Following Controversial TV Ad Campaign

WASHINGTON — Late Thursday, President Donald Trump declared the termination of “all…