After Call by Putin Opponents, Russians Crowd Polls at Noon

Russians crowded outside polling stations at midday Sunday on the last day of a three-day presidential election, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin, who is poised to extend his rule of nearly a quarter-century for six more years after a relentless crackdown on dissent. The election that began Friday has taken place in a tightly controlled environment where there are no real alternatives to Putin and no public criticism of him or his war in Ukraine. Putin's fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic prison last month, and other critics are either in jail or in exile.

Navalny's associates urged those unhappy with Putin or the war to protest by going to the polls at noon Sunday, a strategy endorsed by Navalny shortly before his death. Team Navalny described it as a success, releasing pictures and videos of people crowding near polling stations in cities across Russia around noon. The 71-year-old Russian leader faces three token rivals from Kremlin-friendly parties that have refrained from any criticism of his 24-year rule or his invasion of Ukraine. Russia's wartime economy has proven resilient, expanding despite bruising Western sanctions. The Russian defense industry has served as a key growth engine, working around the clock to churn out missiles, tanks, and ammunition.

Voting is taking place at polling stations across the vast country's 11 time zones, in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine, and online. More than 60% of eligible voters had cast ballots as of early Sunday. In Moscow, Dmitry Sergienko said he voted for Putin: "I am happy with everything and want everything to continue as it is now." Another Moscow voter said that he hopes for change but that "unfortunately, it's unlikely." In a YouTube broadcast, Ivan Zhdanov, head of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, said: "The action has achieved its goals. The action has shown that there is another Russia, there are people who stand against Putin."

(More Russian elections stories.)