Nicolas Tonev / Photo credit: STRINGER / AFP
On the last day of the presidential election in Russia this Sunday, opponents of Vladimir Putin are called to vote at noon sharp. An initiative from Yulia Navalnaïa, the widow of the late opponent Alexeï Navalny. But the government is trying to find solutions to avoid gatherings.
Third and final day of the Russian presidential election this Sunday. A final day of voting which begins, according to the Russian army, under a shower of 35 Ukrainian drone attacks, which were repelled. 63 million people have already gone to the polling stations despite this deleterious climate. But the big protest action of the day will be that of the supporters of the late opponent Alexeï Navalny: opponents of Vladimir Putin are called to come and vote en masse at noon to show their opposition to the master of the Kremlin.
Civic resistance
Opponents who will legally accomplish, without violating any law, their electoral and patriotic duty, according to official rhetoric, at noon precisely, will engage in civic resistance. Yulia Navalnaïa, the widow of Alexeï Navalny, described the mode of action to her fellow citizens shortly after the death of her husband. “You have the right to vote at any time. Voting at noon is no more dangerous than at any other time. In every city and every neighborhood, there could be millions of you who come at noon. agree with another person, it will be your stone in the building.”
The authorities are mainly waiting for what can happen in Moscow or Saint Petersburg, the country’s megacities which bring together around 20 million people. Alexeï Navalny had found a place as opposition leader there. According to Russian media in exile, trolls of the services are spreading messages indicating that the “voting” action at noon is canceled. Others would send SMS saying that we must vote without queuing, therefore without crowds that could resemble a form of demonstration. The difficulty for those in power will be to recognize in a polling station at noon who comes to protest and who comes simply to vote.