Some 76% of Russians have approved the reform strengthening the power of Vladimir Putin, according to a survey conducted outside the polling stations and published on Monday, June 29, while there are still three voting days.
Voting takes place from June 25 to July 1 in order to avoid excessive crowds at polling stations due to the pandemic of the new coronavirus. But on Monday, the Vtsiom institute announced yes at the top with 76%, no at 23.6% and blank or spoiled ballots at 0.4%. The poll was conducted from June 25 to 28, four of the seven polling days, in 25 regions and among more than 163,000 people. About 70.6% of the respondents agreed to respond.
The Vtsiom Institute justified its decision to publish its results before the end of the poll by a “strong demandFor this type of information, the absence of a legal prohibition and rejected the idea that such a publication could have an effect on the conduct of the vote. “It is not prohibited by law to publish it“Said the director of the Vtsiom Institute, Valeri Fyodorov, in a comment sent to AFP,”and if not prohibited by law, what pressure (on the electoral process) can it be?“, He stressed.
Vladimir Putin could serve two additional terms
The president of the Central Election Commission, Ella Pamfilova, regretted the publication of the poll. “Unfortunately, the law does not regulate this and we have no leverage to ban it“She said on Business FM radio, adding that the Commission had asked that the results of the investigation not be published”at least until the vote is finished».
The reform submitted to the Russians authorized the incumbent president to remain in the Kremlin for two more terms, until 2036, the year of his 84th birthday. Under the rule of law, Mr. Poutine should have retired from the presidency in 2024. In addition to the question of mandates, the president strengthens with this vote certain prerogatives, such as the appointment and dismissal of judges.
To this is added an indexation of pensions, the “faith in GodEnshrined in the Constitution just like marriage as a heterosexual institution. The reform has already been adopted by legislators, but Mr. Poutine ruled that it should be legitimized by a popular vote, even if it does not in itself have legal force. The Russian opposition has denounced an electoral farce intended to pave the way for a lifetime presidency for Vladimir Putin.
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