Four Putins in a Row

Russia’s presidential election is over

Preliminary voting results for the Russian presidential election on March 17, 2024. Source of image: Central Election Commission

When False Dmitry seized power in the Kremlin four hundred years ago during the Time of Troubles, no one bothered with democratic procedures. In those years there were no elections, not even formal ones. However, False Dmitry’s successor Vladimir Putin is a legalist, he needs formal electoral approval. Plunging Russia into a new Time of Troubles he is concerned with the beauty of form rather than the political essence of his rule.

The Central Election Commission has finished counting the votes and announced the final results. The incumbent head of state Vladimir Putin won 87.28% of the vote. Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party received 4.31% of the vote, Vladislav Davankov of the New People — 3.85%, Leonid Slutsky of the Liberal Democratic Party — 3.2%. Voter turnout in all regions was 74.22%, a record for Russia.

Vladimir Putin will become president for the fifth time. The elections in Russia produced the expected record result, which should show how united the population is behind Putin. After all, no one in the Kremlin cares that there were also protests and arrests. The election results were designed to look convincing to both domestic and Western audiences.

The inconvenient truth for the West is that it will have to live with Vladimir Putin and the new…