MOSCOW, September 17. /TASS/. The majority of Russians, or 60%, trust the results of polls, with 37% saying they trust them completely and 23% admitting minor violations, according to the data from the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM).

The survey was conducted on September 12, covering 1,600 respondents over 18 years of age.

"Russians generally appreciate the transparency and fairness of the elections: 37% of those surveyed are convinced that the results can be fully trusted, as many as 23% admit minor violations that do not affect the vote outcome. In other words, the majority of the population, or 60%, rules out the possibility that the official election results are unreliable," the pollster said. That opinion is mostly expressed by regular visitors to polling stations, or 68%, and 20% of people polled do not trust the election results.

"Among the poll’s participants, 25% hold the opposite opinion, including 6% who said about serious violations that had a significant impact on the election results, and 19% who believe that elections can’t be trusted. For 15% of Russians, the question of their legitimacy was challenging," the survey said.

E-voting and three-day voting

In total, 75% of Russians are aware of the opportunity to vote not only according to their registration address, but also at the place of their actual stay. Thus, 32% are well aware of the possibility of remote e-voting, 43% know about it in general. Among those who prefer a mixed model of media consumption, like TV and Internet, this figure reaches 80%. Finally, 25% noted hearing about the remote e-voting for the first time.

The survey also found that 61% of those surveyed are generally in favor of three-day voting. As for the rest of the respondents, 21% are indifferent to the recent innovation and 16% consider it to be a negative tendency. Among those who say they would "definitely go to all elections" or "try to go to elections," 68% support three-day voting; the figure is even higher among active TV viewers - it is 73%.

In addition, VCIOM experts found out that no consensus on the issue of remote e-voting is currently reached. "Slightly over half of those polled, or 53%, would rather approve the possibility to vote in elections remotely, the group of those opposing technologies comprises 39%. In recent years, the situation has been changing towards an increase in the number of supporters of remote voting (39-45% in 2023), and the September measurement updated the maximum (50% in 2020 and 53% in 2024)," the study notes.

The Single Voting Day was held throughout Russia in September, when almost 4,000 election campaigns took place. Direct elections for top executive offices were held in 21 regions. Local legislative elections took place in 13 Russian regions. Three single-mandate districts held by-elections to the State Duma (lower house of Russia’s parliament).