16:27, 18 March 2018

Amazingly high voter turnout reported at presidential election in Chechnya

A polling station in Makhachkala. March 18, 2018. Photo by Timur Isaev for the "Caucasian Knot"

Over 40 percent of voters came to polling stations in Chechnya by noon, the republican election commission reported. The growth of turnout is expected in the afternoon.

The authorities of Chechnya actively organized various events to raise the turnout in the presidential elections. On March 12, they said that 90% of Chechen voters would take part in the elections.

At 2016 Parliamentary Elections in Russia, the highest voter turnout was recorded in Chechnya — 94.92%.

According to the local election commission, total number of voters in Chechnya is 707 857 people. A representative of the republican electoral committee said there have been no violations yet.

Meanwhile, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent noted that only nine people visited one of the polling stations in 20 minutes, although more than 2,000 voters were registered at it.

Experts call the anomalous results of the elections "Kadyrov peaks," said Roman Udot, a member of the council of the "Voice" movement for the protection of the rights of voters. According to him, such results can be achieved in case the electoral commissions fill a quota instead of conducting an honest count of votes.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Source: CK correspondent