Kadyrov received a record 99.85% of the votes in the elections for the head of Chechnya.

In the elections for the head of Chechnya, 99.85% of the votes were cast for Ramzan Kadyrov, while his opponents Ismail Denilkhanov and Khalid Nakayev received 0.05% each, according to data from the Central Election Commission after processing 100% of the ballots.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on September 20, residents of Grozny shared their plans for the last day of the three-day voting. According to the Chechen election commission, the turnout after the first two days was 85.24%.

According to the Central Election Commission, after processing 100% of the ballots, Ramzan Kadyrov, nominated by "United Russia", received 99.85% of the votes. The Chairman of the Public Chamber of Chechnya Ismail Denilkhanov from "Just Russia" and the deputy of the republic's parliament Khalid Nakayev from the Communist Party received 0.05% each.

The results were published today on the online scoreboard on the Central Election Commission's (CEC) website.

According to data on the "Observing Together" project website, as of 09:40 Moscow time, there were no reports of violations in the elections in Chechnya. The project is positioned as an "independent platform for monitoring the 2026 elections". "We publish data on election commissions and violations," the annotation states. Information is transmitted to the project authors by users via Telegram using a bot. "Caucasian Knot" considers it needing confirmation and does not regard information from users as reports of violations.

It should be noted that the result of 99.85% of the votes is a record for Ramzan Kadyrov in the elections for the head of Chechnya. In the 2021 elections, he received 99.7% of the votes, also breaking his previous record. In 2016, Kadyrov was supported by 97.94% of voters. In 2011, elections for the head of Chechnya were not held: all deputies of the republic's National Assembly supported Kadyrov's reappointment for a new term.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that earlier analysts indicated that real political competition in these elections was not expected, and the participation of Denilkhanov and Nakayev only provides a formal alternative to Kadyrov.

Bloggers Tumso Abdurakhmanov* called both of Kadyrov's opponents technical candidates. "Both are ordinary representatives of Kadyrov's team, assigned to play the role of technical candidates," he told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot".

Another Chechen analyst also assessed the actual competitiveness of the elections as extremely low. According to him, previous campaigns and the public activities of Kadyrov's opponents did not indicate a real struggle for power. "The participation of candidates from parliamentary parties at least provides the necessary external alternative for voting," he told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" on condition of anonymity.

Recall that in the 2021 elections for the head of Chechnya, Kadyrov's opponents together received 1,899 votes. In 2016, each of Kadyrov's three opponents received less than one percent of the votes. Data from previous campaigns were cited by analysts as evidence of extremely limited electoral competition.

Before the 2021 elections, residents of Chechnya reported administrative pressure on budget sector workers. They claimed that teachers were forced to participate in pre-election rallies under the threat of dismissal and were required to come to vote, and school teachers where polling stations were located had to be present there for all three days.

After the voting, residents of the republic reported about "carousel" voting. Teachers and doctors told "Caucasian Knot" that they were forced to vote multiple times at different polling stations against their will; one state employee also reported that management demanded workers publish a photo of their completed ballot.

Similar statements were made during the elections for the head of Chechnya in 2016. Residents of the republic reported mass violations and claimed that budget workers were forced to participate in voting and vote as instructed under the threat of dismissal.

* included in the register of foreign agents by the Ministry of Justice of Russia.

** the activities of the Meta company (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.