United Russia leads parliamentary vote as drone attack hits Moscow
Partial results showed United Russia leading Russia’s parliamentary election after a major Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow and other regions.
Moscow, Russia. Russia’s ruling United Russia party was leading the parliamentary election with 57.5% of the vote in partial official results released on Sunday, following a major Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow and other regions.
Election results
The vote was the first State Duma election since Russia launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022. President Vladimir Putin had presented the election as a test of support for the war.
The Communist Party, the ultra-nationalist LDPR, New People and A Just Russia were trailing United Russia but were expected to win seats in the lower house of parliament. All four parties support United Russia on major issues.
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and a former president, said United Russia had performed with dignity and that the result showed Russians had entrusted the party to continue governing.
Drone strikes and damage
Russian officials accused Ukraine of attempting to disrupt the vote through the drone attack, which TASS described as the largest of its kind since the war began.
According to the governor of the Moscow region and the election commission, the strikes killed three people in the Moscow region and two people in the Russian-held part of Ukraine’s Kherson region, including an election official.
A facility at Moscow’s oil refinery was damaged. Flames and large columns of smoke were seen rising from the site on the outskirts of the capital as voting began.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said the attack had been repelled and described it as an attempt to disrupt the election.
Cyber attacks
Russia’s Defence Ministry said Ukraine had fired Flamingo cruise missiles and that Russian forces had downed nearly 2,000 drones and eight cruise missiles over the previous 24 hours. The ministry said Russia would intensify strikes on Ukrainian military targets.
Election authorities also reported waves of cyber attacks on voting systems, while saying the electoral process had otherwise been largely smooth.
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