MOSCOW, September 5. /TASS/. Voters will be able to cast their ballots at almost 45,000 polling stations in 83 regions during the upcoming elections in Russia, according to a report compiled by election commissions about their readiness for the single voting day.
The report was presented at a meeting of Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) by its Chairwoman Ella Pamfilova.
"We have engaged 83 election commissions in 83 regions. As many as 44,144 general election commissions were formed, with 717 more set up in locations where voters are temporarily staying," Pamfilova said.
A total of 44,861 polling stations have been set up in 83 regions. Of these, 379 are in hospitals, resorts, hotels and other places of temporary stay for voters, 269 polling stations are arranged on ships that will be at sea on election day, 52 more are in pre-trial detention centers, nine are set up in military units, and another four at rail terminals and airports.
In addition, Pamfilova said that 21 extraterritorial polling stations were organized in 14 regions for those voters who had evacuated the Kursk Region. She added that "colossal efforts" were needed to get all this done.
"[We had] to find people, determine where they are, to organize the operation of commissions, and to deliver equipment," the CEC chairwoman said, thanking her colleagues for this work.
The Single Voting Day will be held throughout Russia on September 6-8, when almost 4,000 election campaigns will find out if all their hard work will pay off. Direct elections for top executive offices will take place in 21 regions, while in four more regions, namely Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area (Yugra) and Crimea, they will be elected by local parliaments. Local legislative elections will take place in 13 Russian regions. Three single-mandate districts will hold by-elections to the State Duma (lower house of Russia’s parliament). Early voting has been underway in the Kursk Region since August 28.