Russia: Voter turnout at 44.38 percent in Duma elections as second day concludes
Moscow, 19 Sep (KUNA) -- Russia's Central Election Commission announced on Saturday that voter turnout in the Russian State Duma elections reached 44.38 percent at the close of polling stations on the second day of voting, with the electoral process set to continue on Sunday for its third and final day.
The commission stated in a statement that the elections, which include the selection of members of the State Duma for its ninth term, are being held from 18 to 20 September, coinciding with regional and local elections in several Russian regions.
The RIA Novosti news agency quoted Ella Pamfilova, head of Russia's Central Election Commission, as saying that voting is proceeding in Russian regions without any issues that could affect the course of the electoral process, noting that no significant malfunctions have been recorded in the remote electronic voting system.
Pamfilova added that the Ministry of Internal Affairs received 367 reports of incidents related to the electoral process over the past 24 hours, while 24 false reports of terrorist acts were registered on the first day of voting.
Regarding electronic voting, Russian authorities reported that participation via the federal platform for remote electronic voting exceeded 70 percent. Moscow announced that more than 2.5 million voters participated in the electronic voting for the State Duma elections, according to data reported by Russian media.
Pamfilova stated that the infrastructure for remote electronic voting in Moscow was subjected to cyberattacks, confirming that the systems continued to operate and that the attacks were successfully repelled.
Russian authorities also reported detecting attempts to target voting systems and communication networks during the second day of voting.
In the same context, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported that more than 23,000 Russian citizens abroad cast their votes in the elections. Meanwhile, the Russian Public Chamber stated that it had not detected any serious violations that could affect the will of the voters during the second day, according to Russian media reports.
The elections for the ninth State Duma are being conducted under an electoral system that combines party lists and single-member constituencies, with 450 deputies to be elected to the council. The vote-counting process will begin after voting concludes, in accordance with procedures established by Russian electoral authorities.
Voting is scheduled to conclude on Sunday, 20 September, after which the vote-counting process and the announcement of preliminary results will follow sequentially. The Central Election Commission will determine the official results in accordance with applicable legal procedures.
(END) D.A.N / M.M.J
