Russia Is Gearing Up for Nationwide Elections. This Is What You Need to Know.

Pre-election explainer by The Moscow Times, 2 July 2026. It sets out that the three-day State Duma election on 18–20 September would choose 225 deputies in single-member constituencies and 225 from party lists, and would be the first parliamentary vote in which residents of the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine take part. It states that Russia has about 111 million registered voters and that electronic voting, which critics accuse of being a tool for vote rigging, had been approved in 33 regions covering roughly 48 million eligible voters. Citing Vedomosti, it reports that regional officials had been instructed to keep turnout at around 50 per cent.