What happened
Russians began voting Friday in a three-day election that is all but guaranteed to hand President Vladimir Putin a fifth term.
Who said what
The Russian election is a "sham," said Sam Greene, a director at the Center for European Policy Analysis in Washington. "The Kremlin controls who's on the ballot" and "every aspect of the voting and the vote-counting process."
The commentary
Putin's opponents are mostly in prison, exiled or dead. His three authorized rivals are low-profile politicians from token opposition parties. Yes, "Putin is certain to win," Politico said, but Russia's opposition is determined to give him a "bloody nose," urging protesters to vote en masse at noon on Sunday to "showcase popular revulsion" at Putin's reign.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Russians will "doubtless wake up to find President Putin has been reelected" on March 18, and "when he appears at a victory rally in Moscow, he may even shed a tear — as he did after the 2012 presidential election," the BBC said. Then it is six more years of "the illusion of democracy."
-
Catholic bishops rebuke Trump on immigrationSpeed Read ‘We feel compelled’ to ‘raise our voices in defense of God-given human dignity,’ the bishops said
-
House releases Epstein emails referencing TrumpSpeed Read The emails suggest Trump knew more about Epstein’s sex trafficking of underage women than he has claimed
-
Newsom slams Trump’s climate denial at COP30speed read Trump, who has called climate change a ‘hoax,’ declined to send any officials to this week’s summit
-
UK, Colombia halt intel to US over boat attacksSpeed Read Both countries have suspended intelligence sharing with the US over the bombing of civilian boats suspected of drug smuggling
-
Trump pardons 2020 fake electors, other GOP alliesSpeed Read The president pardoned Rudy Giuliani and more who tried to overturn his 2020 election loss
-
Supreme Court to decide on mail-in ballot limitsSpeed Read The court will determine whether states can count mail-in ballots received after Election Day
-
Democrats split as Senate votes to end shutdownSpeed Read The proposed deal does not extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, the Democrats’ main demand
-
USDA orders states to ‘undo’ full SNAP paymentsSpeed Read The Trump administration is telling states not to pay full November food stamp benefits
