Russian Elections 'Far From Free and Fair,' Say Monitors — The Moscow Times
Russia's parliamentary elections were “far from truly free and fair,” the independent election monitoring group Golos reported Monday.
The 2016 elections saw substantial improvements from those in 2011, but the country still faced a “long and difficult road to reform,” the group said in their official report.
Golos praised the positive influence of the new head of the Central Elections Committee, Ella Pamfilova, but lamented that there were still "institutional changes needed to prevent fraud.”
"Although there were fewer violations than in 2011, the number of recorded irregularities should be recognized as substantial," the group said.
Golos received 1,798 reports of possible violations during Sunday's elections. Complaints were predominantly regarding stuffed ballots, "cruise voting," and pressure placed on the electorate by authorities.
