In those rare moments when we are not discussing the coronavirus epidemic, we are, of course, discussing Putin’s “reset” and the bizarre “nationwide vote” that the Kremlin is almost maniacally determined to hold as soon as possible—even if it means unfortunate pensioners infecting one another.
The best initial response to this “reset” would be mass protests across the country, but trying to hold them now would be irresponsible. Perhaps a year from now we will laugh at today’s quarantine and conclude that all these measures were excessive, but for now we should all proceed from the fact that the risk of catching the virus somewhere and passing it on to our parents or grandparents—for whom it carries a 15–20% mortality risk—is completely unacceptable.
That is why the right course of action is not entirely obvious. There is already a great deal of debate, and there will be even more. I decided to briefly set out my thoughts:
After I recorded the video, I saw a statement by Golos (an independent Russian election-monitoring movement, and one that has always opposed boycotts) saying that it is impossible to determine the genuine will of the citizens in this “vote.”
And then, last night, Putin said that the vote on the constitutional amendments could also be held at home.
And just now, the cherry on top came from Andrei Buzin—one of the most respected leaders of the election-monitoring movement.
I did not know this before: “The number of citizens who took part in the nationwide vote is determined by the number of ballots in the ballot boxes.”
What is the most basic method of protecting elections from fraud? Cross-checking the figures in the official protocol. If 300 ballots were issued but there are 1,000 in the box, then someone very clumsily stuffed 700 fake ballots into it.
These days the methods of falsification are far more sophisticated, but for Putin’s term reset, all the rules have been reset as well.
How many people voted? Well, let’s open the box and count. There we are: 13,284 ballots. Of those, 13,100 are for the amendments. Let’s write that down.
So I am wholeheartedly with those who want to vote “against,” “no,” and so on. You can even go and vote, but it is pointless, because this vote has no rules. There is only the scoreboard with the result that Ella Pamfilova (chair of Russia’s Central Election Commission) will light up.
Do not expect a good result there, and above all, do not be upset when television announces that the whole country wants Putin forever. If that were really the case, the Kremlin would not have been too scared to hold a referendum.
The only possible tactic is to refuse to recognize both the vote itself and its result, and to undermine its authority and credibility in the eyes of those who still do not understand what is happening.
That is why this perverse procedure must be carefully examined, dissected, ridiculed, and morally demolished—and in no case recognized as legitimate.
If Tereshkova and United Russia want to reset Putin’s terms, then let them put it to a referendum. We would all take part in it, and you would lose.
That is precisely why there will be no referendum. Putin understands that he would lose. He would lose even this vote, which is why he has stripped away all rules and oversight.
Real elections are worth taking part in; non-elections are not.
And there will be real elections. They will be difficult, tedious, unexciting, and unpopular. They too will involve very serious fraud. But there, both your vote and your campaigning efforts will matter. And there, it is possible to strike precisely at the source of all this nauseating filth about the “reset” and the idea that “Russia cannot survive without Putin”: United Russia’s control over legislatures across the country. That is the foundation of the regime that can be targeted through official procedures.
Next September, elections will be held in 28 federal subjects (regions) of Russia. In one sense, everything will be easier than last time, because we have all seen that Smart Voting works. In another sense, it will be harder. This time the capitals are not voting, which means there will be much less attention to the process. But without this work, and without defeating the ruling party at least in the largest cities, nothing will come of it.
Your vote will be badly needed there, and it will be real. Do not put it off—register with Smart Voting.