MOSCOW, September 17./TASS/. The Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) reports bogus information about the Russian parliamentary elections, but there have been no reports to the election commissions for now about major violations, the CEC’s deputy head, Nikolai Bulayev, said on Friday.
"So far as I have seen, we have fakes, when they pass off testing [of facilities to process ballot papers] before 08:00, long before the election commissions begin their work, as ballot stuffing," Bulayev said.
"These fakes are traditional for the election campaign and are easily refuted. There have been no serious complaints and appeals to the Central Election Commission or the regions for now," he added.
The CEC immediately considers any reports, even if minor violations are reported, its deputy chief said. "All active participants have the chance to watch the [voting] process," Bulayev stressed.
Elections to the 8th Russian State Duma (lower house) are scheduled for September 19, 2021, known as the Single Voting Day. The balloting process will span across three days - September 17, 18, and 19. In addition to the State Duma elections, voters will go to the polls to cast ballots for the heads of nine Russian regions (in another three regions local legislatures will elect top executive officials) and in elections for 39 regional parliaments.