MOSCOW, June 18. /TASS/. The Russian State Duma elections will take place during standard hours - between 8 AM and 8 PM local time - and will take three days, Russian Central Electoral Commission head Ella Pamfilova said Friday.
The Duma electoral campaign timetable covers September 17, 18, and 19.
"The voting hours on September 17 and 18 will be the same as during the traditional day of vote - September 19, Sunday. We do not spread the vote in time, it will be a fully-fledged vote between 8 AM and 8 PM across all three days," Pamfilova said.
Changes of voting hours were previously in discussion, due to concerns that, during multi-day elections, the vote may interfere with education process, because many voting stations in Russia are traditionally located in schools.
The vote will have two main formats - voting at voting stations and at home - Pamfilova said, adding that the latter will be streamlines, in order to rule out "any liberties." In this regard, she noted that the "Mobile voter" system, which makes it possible to vote depending on place of stay instead of place of registration, in combination with the three-day vote "pulls the rug from under those who seek to organize additional voting stations, for example at facilities with continuous production cycle."
"There is no need now, a person can now vote before or after work hours, or simply register at another voting station not far from their job," the official said. "We bring back voting at home to its true purpose: to help those in need, whose mobility is limited, or who cannot visit the voting station over a serious reason."
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order scheduling Duma elections to the single voting day of September 19, 2021. The order has been officially published, marking the official start of the electoral campaign.