Kremlin aims for high voter turnout to legitimize Putin's war in Ukraine

Russians crowded outside polling stations at midday Sunday on the last day of a three-day presidential election, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin.

Mr. Putin is poised to extend his nearly quarter century of rule for six more years after a relentless crackdown on dissent.

The election was taking place amid attacks within Russia by Ukrainian missiles and drones, which have killed several people. Polls opened Friday in a tightly controlled environment where there are no real alternatives to Mr. Putin, and little public criticism of him or his war in Ukraine.

Mr. Putin's fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic prison last month, and other critics are either in jail or in exile. There are no significant independent observers monitoring the election.

Mr. Navalny's associates urged those unhappy with Mr. Putin or the war to protest by coming to the polls at noon on Sunday, a strategy endorsed by Mr. Navalny shortly before his death. Mr. Navalny's team described it as a success, pointing to pictures and videos of people crowding near polling stations in cities across Russia around noon.

The 71-year-old Russian leader only faces three token rivals from Kremlin-friendly parties who have refrained from any criticism of his 24-year rule or his full-scale invasion of Ukraine that was launched on Feb. 24, 2022.

Mr. Putin has boasted of Russian battlefield successes in the period leading up to the vote, but a major Ukrainian drone attack across Russia on Sunday once again was a reminder of challenges faced by the Kremlin.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported that it took down more than 40 Ukrainian drones overnight and on Sunday, including four near the Russian capital.

The local governor of Russia's Belgorod region said that Ukrainian shelling on Sunday killed a man and a 16-year-old girl, and wounded at least 12 other people. The governor also said two people died during attacks the previous day.

Mr. Putin previously described the attacks as an attempt by Ukraine to frighten residents and derail Russia's presidential election, saying they "won't be left unpunished."

Voting is taking place at polling stations across the vast country's 11 time zones, in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine, and online.

Stanislav Andreychuk, co-chair of the Golos independent election watchdog, said that pressure on voters from law enforcement had reached unprecedented levels.

Russians, he said in a social media post, were searched at polling stations, their ballots checked before they were cast, and police demanded a ballot box was opened to remove a ballot.

"It's the first time in my life that I've seen such absurdities and I've been observing elections for 20 years," Mr. Andreychuk wrote on the messaging app Telegram, referring to the actions of law enforcement.

A video, shared on social media, also appeared to show an armed man in camouflage gear going into booths, harassing Russians as they voted.

Some people told The Associated Press that they were happy to vote for Mr. Putin.

Dmitry Sergienko, who cast his ballot in Moscow, said, "I am happy with everything and want everything to continue as it is now."

Olga Dymova, who also backed Mr. Putin, said, "I am sure that our country will only move forward towards success."

Apparently heeding the opposition's call to protest, lines outside several polling stations both inside and outside Russia appeared to swell around noon.

Some Russians waiting to vote in Moscow and St. Petersburg told the AP that they were taking part in the protest, but it wasn't possible to confirm whether all of those pictured in line were doing so.

Joining a line at a polling station around noon in Moscow, a woman who said her name was Yulia told the AP that she was voting for the first time.

"Even if my vote doesn't change anything, my conscience will be clear...for the future that I want to see for our country," she said.

Another Moscow voter, who also identified himself only by his first name, Vadim, said he hoped for change, but added that "unfortunately, it's unlikely."

Ivan Zhdanov, the head of Mr. Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, said that the opposition's call to protest had been successful.

"The action has shown that there's another Russia, there are people who stand against Putin."

Huge lines formed around noon outside Russian diplomatic missions in London, Berlin, Paris, Milan, Belgrade, and other cities with large Russian communities, many of whom left Russia after Mr. Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Mr. Navalny's widow, Yulia Navalnaya, joined the line at the Russian Embassy in Berlin as some in the crowd applauded and chanted her name.

Protesters in Berlin displayed a figure of Mr. Putin bathing in a bath of blood with the Ukrainian flag on the side, alongside shredded ballots in ballot boxes.

Russian state television and officials said the lines abroad showed strong turnout. The Russian Embassy in Germany posted a video of the queue in Berlin on X, formerly Twitter, with the caption, "together we are strong – Vote for Russia!"

In Tallinn, where hundreds stood in a line snaking around the Estonian capital's cobbled streets leading to the Russian Embassy, 23-year-old Tatiana said she came to take part in the protest at noon.

"If we have some option to protest I think it's important to utilize any opportunity," she said, only giving her first name, citing personal security reasons.

Boris Nadezhdin, a liberal politician who tried to join the race on an anti-war platform but was barred from running by election officials, voiced hope that many Russians cast their ballots against Mr. Putin.

"I believe that the Russian people today have a chance to show their real attitude to what is happening by voting not for Mr. Putin, but for some other candidates or in some other way, which is exactly what I did," he said after voting in Dolgoprudny, just outside Moscow.

The OVD-Info group that monitors political arrests said that more than 75 people were arrested in 17 cities across Russia on Sunday.

Despite tight controls, several dozen cases of vandalism at polling stations were reported.

A woman was arrested in St. Petersburg after she threw a firebomb at a polling station entrance, and several others were detained across the country for throwing green antiseptic or ink into ballot boxes.

Dmitry Medvedev, a deputy head of the Russian Security Council chaired by Mr. Putin, called for toughening the punishment for those who vandalize polling stations, arguing they should face treason charges for attempting to derail the vote amid the fighting in Ukraine.

Some Russian media also posted images of spoiled ballots posted by voters, with "killer and thief" inscribed on one, and "waiting for you in The Hague" written on another, in a reference to an arrest warrant issued for Mr. Putin on war crimes charges related to his alleged responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.