A billboard announcing the 2024 presidential election in Salekhard, a city in the Russian Arctic. Photo: EPA-EFE/ANATOLY MALTSEV
Russia’s ruling party United Russia has developed an app to monitor voter turnout among government employees, voter rights NGO Golos revealed on Thursday.
Golos said that a video promoting the app had been sent out to several United Russia deputies tasked with encouraging government employees to download the app.
The app has a GPS tracking system that allows the voter to check in at their polling station and confirm that they have voted. It’s impossible to “trick the system”, Golos experts say, as the app only works at the polling station where the voter is registered.
Only voters in the party’s database will be able to use the service. Polling stations will have QR codes with a link to the service for those who forgot to download it in advance, the video says.
Golos said that monitoring turnout violates the principle of the secret ballot and freedom of expression, and impinges on voters’ rights.
The Russian presidential election will take place over three days on 15–17 March. For the first time ever, Russia will use online voting in 27 regions as well as in annexed Crimea, a system that has been criticised by election observers for its lack of transparency.
