The Russian legislative elections, the first since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, took place over three days, from September 18 to 20, 2026, in a context of persistent conflict and Ukrainian drone attacks. The United Russia party, loyal to President Vladimir Putin, predictably won, according to exit polls conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM), a state institute, which credited it with 49.4% of the vote (rtl.be). This election aimed to renew the 450 seats in the Duma, the lower house of the Russian Parliament, including votes in the Ukrainian territories occupied and annexed by Russia (rtl.be). The electoral process was strongly contested by Western observers and dissenting voices. Critics point out that only parties supporting, to varying degrees, the line of...
There is a general consensus on the expected victory of Putin and United Russia, as well as on the occurrence of Ukrainian drone attacks. The major dissonance lies in the interpretation of these events. Sources from the East/South bloc (notably Russian sources ng.ru) focus on participation and legitimate victory, minimizing or ignoring the context of the attacks. The West bloc...
This synthesis compares media coverage and flags blind spots, biases and conflicts of interest around this topic.
Read the full synthesis