Putin urges Russians to vote in parliamentary election as show of support for Ukraine war

Russia's President Vladimir ⁠Putin on Wednesday framed ​participation in an upcoming parliamentary election as a barometer of support for ​Russia's war in Ukraine and urged Russians to vote. Russia holds a three-day parliamentary election starting on Friday to choose the composition of its 450-seat ​lower ‌house of parliament, the State Duma, which has ⁠a track record of faithfully approving the Kremlin's initiatives. It is the first parliamentary election since ‌Russia launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022 and ⁠comes at a time when opinion polls show some Russians have become more anxious about how the conflict affects them, ​as the economy is under strain, and as most ‌anti-war candidates have been excluded from the ballot. Read moreElections in Russia: the 1001 tricks to remove inconvenient candidates The political system is tightly controlled and the ruling United Russia party, backed by Putin, is widely ‌expected to retain its dominance. In a televised address to the nation ahead of the vote, Putin ​referred to the war in Ukraine and to Russian-controlled parts of Ukraine, saying that casting a vote would help secure Russia's victory and ​demonstrate national...