MERIDA /Mexico/, March 12. /TASS/. Early voting in the Russian presidential election ended in Mexico on Sunday. It was held in nine Mexican cities on March 10-11. Over 40 people were able to cast their ballots per day in Merida, the capital of the state of Yucatan, Andrey Pakhomov, a representative of the Russian Federal Agency for CIS Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad and International Humanitarian Cooperation, who oversaw the work of the polling station in Merida, informed TASS.

This city is hosting the FILEY-2018 International Book Fair. Russia has become its guest of honor. One of the small pavilions of the Russian delegation was used as a polling station. "More than 40 people cast their ballots. Those were mostly members of the delegation that arrived in Mexico and about 15 Russian citizens living in the city of Merida," Pakhomov said. "People came with pleasure, cast their ballots, the atmosphere was friendly." No incidents were reported during the voting, Merida’s police were involved in efforts to maintain security.

The Russian-speaking community in Mexico includes from 17,000 to 20,000 people. On March 18, the election day, the polling station will be working in the Russian Embassy in Mexico City, the capital of Mexico.

Eight contenders are vying for the presidential office. They are incumbent head of state Vladimir Putin who is seeking another presidential term as an independent candidate for Russia’s highest public office, LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky, businessman Pavel Grudinin running as the Communist Party of the Russian Federation’s candidate, Yabloko party co-founder Grigory Yavlinsky, leader of the Party of Growth and business ombudsman Boris Titov, head of the Russian People’s Union party Sergey Baburin, TV personality and socialite Ksenia Sobchak (nominated by Civil Initiative) and leader of the Communists of Russia Maxim Suraikin.