ALBAWABA - Today, Russia is holding local elections in a total of 80 regions, a notable inclusion being the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson regions, which have been occupied by Russia following the Ukraine conflict.
The elections will see the election of 21 regional leaders, 20 local parliament members, and 17 municipal council members. Moscow's mayor and the Moscow regional governor will also be chosen.
The Central Election Commission of Russia has reported that over 35,000 polling station officials are overseeing the elections, which will conclude on September 10. However, there have been some technical glitches with the online voting system.
Ella Pamfilova, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of Russia, revealed that the voting website experienced more than 5,000 cyberattacks by midday. Although Russian experts managed to counter these attempts, the attacks persist.
The first response to Russia's elections came from Ukraine, which declared that the elections in the occupied territories and Crimea have no legal validity and are considered null and void. Ukrainians have been encouraged to boycott these elections.
The U.S. Department of State has also issued a statement regarding the elections, asserting that Washington does not acknowledge any of Russia's claims over Ukrainian territory.
