Russia. Green liquid poured into urns, molotov cocktail thrown in Petersburg

Russian media report cases of pouring green liquid into ballot boxes. Opponents of Vladimir Putin are thus destroying voting cards. Arson attacks are also occurring. In Petersburg, a woman threw a Molotov cocktail at the facade of a building housing a polling station.

According to "The Moscow Times", the liquid is antiseptic, previously used to douse opposition activists. During ongoing elections in Russia, the substance was poured into ballot boxes in at least seven regions, destroying voting cards. Incidents took place in regions like Rostov Oblast and the Karachay-Cherkess Republic.

Russian Presidential Elections: citizens pouring green liquid into urns

Ella Pamfilova, Chairwoman of the Central Election Commission, stated that individuals arrested in connection with the incidents testified they were paid to pour the liquid into the urn. They also claimed they were unaware of the criminal responsibility.

A similar incident occurred in Moscow, captured on CCTV where a young woman pours liquid from a bottle into an urn before being apprehended by a uniformed man.

"The Moscow Times" reports that a 20-year-old could face up to five years in prison for obstructing voting. A similar incident was noted in Russian-occupied Crimea. Russian authorities announced that after the elections, destroyed voting cards would be counted.

Russian media also report other incidents. Several polling stations witnessed arson attacks on urns or voting booths. In one video published by the SOTA portal, a burning section of the floor is visible beside an urn. Additionally, according to Fontanka, a resident of Petersburg threw a Molotov cocktail at a polling station, as shown in the video where the bottle bounces off the building facade and lands on the stairs.

Elections in Russia: 100% turnout on the first day of voting

Three-day presidential elections are ongoing in Russia. Polling stations will be open from 8 am to 8 pm until March 17. Russian anti-Putin and anti-war movements urge the democratic world to recognize Vladimir Putin's new term as illegal, labeling the elections as a procedural formality.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a former political prisoner and founder of the "Open Russia" movement, told "Dozhd" television that Ella Pamfilova, Chairwoman of the Central Election Commission, seems to be "80 percent for Putin, with an 80 percent turnout" in her eyes, and no one can convince her otherwise.

The authoritarian regime has taken a sinister turn in its efforts to control the electoral process. Reports have emerged detailing a troubling tactic employed by the government to manipulate votes: the distribution of pens with disappearing ink at polling places. This alarming development has been observed in cities like Kursk and Rostov-on-Don, suggesting a systematic effort to undermine the integrity of the electoral system.

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Four candidates are listed on the ballot: Vladimir Putin, Nikolai Charitonov, Vladislav Dvorkin, and Leonid Slutsky. According to the Wiorstka portal, some Russians living in the Far East have already fulfilled their "patriotic duty," with a 100 percent turnout in 400 polling stations on the first day of voting.