PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, February 19 (Itar-Tass) —— Secretary of Russia’s Central Elections Commission Nikolai Konkin arrived in Kamchatka on Sunday to check how the region is ready for voting at the presidential election due on March 4, Deputy Chairman of Kamchatka’s election commission Anatoly Gafiatullin said.
During the three-day working visit, Konkin will have working meetings with leaders of Kamchatka’s regional election commission, with Governor Vladimir Ilukhin, representatives of the local legislation and with management of Kamchatka’s branch of Rostelecom.
Konkin will also visit several election stations in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and in Vilyuchinsk, where a base of nuclear submarines is located.
He also plans to control over early voting at the presidential election in one of reindeer regions.
Kamchatka’s election commission reports that the early voting at the presidential election started on February 17. By Sunday, over 160 people participated in it. They are staff of lighthouses, meteorology stations, reindeer farms, nature reserves, as well as military and over 700 fishermen in the sea. The commission forecasts that over 1,200 voters and 5,872 sailors and fishermen will participate in the early election.
Kamchatka’s branch of Rostelecom reports that all the polling stations, which will broadcast the election, have installed video equipment for viewing the election and counting of votes.
Deputy Director of the branch Alexander Kikosh told Itar-Tass that 157 polling stations have the necessary equipment. By the election, the company will equip 186 polling stations, where 23 will record the video without the Internet broadcast, and six polling stations will broadcast via satellite systems directly to Moscow.
Earlier, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Communication and Mass Media Ilya Massukh said that the Internet users will have access to broadcast from all polling stations, but for those mobile or with limited access, like in hospitals, river or sea ports, military units, pre-trial prisons, etc.