MOSCOW, Russia
President of Russia, Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed changes to Russia’s presidential election laws that allow for voting to take place in territories under martial law and introduce new restrictions on media coverage at polling places.
The amendments come just weeks
ahead of Putin's anticipated announcement to run for a fifth term in office as
president, though the Russian leader has said that he will declare his
re-election bid only after parliament formally calls the race, which is expected
to take place in March 2024.
According to the updated “Law
on Presidential Elections,” Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) will be
able to hold elections in regions under martial law after consulting with the
Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Ministry of Defense.
The changes also include bans
for non-accredited journalists to record videos at polling stations located in
military facilities, making it more difficult to document instances of
electoral fraud at these voting locations.
Likewise, unaccredited
journalists are banned from attending CEC sessions under Russia’s new “Law on
Elections.”
Putin enacted an identical law ahead of Russia’s regional
elections in September, which were also held in Russian-occupied territories of
eastern and southern Ukraine.
Western leaders rejected the
results of the September elections in the occupied regions of Ukraine.
Election analysts say Putin’s
latest signing brings Russia’s
law on presidential elections in line with changes made earlier this year to
the country's other electoral laws.
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