Russia’s parliamentary election will take place from September 18 to 20, marking the first vote for the State Duma since Moscow launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022.
The ruling United Russia party, backed by President Vladimir Putin, is widely expected to retain its dominance of the 450-seat lower house.
Who is being elected?
Voters will elect all 450 members of the State Duma for five-year terms.
Half of the seats will be allocated through a nationwide party-list vote, while the remaining 225 will be decided in single-seat constituencies.
A VTsIOM survey conducted at the end of August put United Russia at 37% support among respondents, well ahead of the Communist Party at 11.6%.
The size of United Russia’s expected victory will be closely watched. The party currently holds 310 seats and needs at least 300 to retain its supermajority, allowing it to push through constitutional changes without support from other parties.
Limited opposition
The four other parties expected to return to the Duma, including the Communist Party and the ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, broadly support the war and frequently vote with United Russia on key issues.
The Supreme Court has barred the liberal Yabloko party from taking part in the party-list ballot, sidelining the only registered political party to oppose Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Some Yabloko candidates are still running in single-seat constituencies, as the ruling does not cover those races, but they are not expected to win seats.
Other opposition politicians have also been prevented from participating after being designated as “foreign agents”.
Election observers raise concerns
The independent nationwide election watchdog Golos, which had strongly criticised previous elections, closed in 2025 following years of pressure from Russian authorities.
Russia has also not invited election observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to monitor the vote.
The OSCE said the decision reflected what it described as a pattern of disregard by the Russian government for transparency, democratic accountability and the rule of law.
The organisation has also said Russia’s political system has become more restrictive since the previous parliamentary election in 2021, citing the exclusion of candidates designated as “foreign agents” and tighter campaign financing rules.
Russian authorities have rejected criticism of the electoral process, saying the vote is being conducted in accordance with the law. They have also accused Western countries of seeking to undermine and disrupt the election.
Voting in Russian-controlled Ukrainian territories
The election will also be held in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, as well as in Russian-controlled parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.
According to Russian authorities, voting began early in some areas because of security concerns.
Also read: Russia hits train on Ukraine border, just misses train carrying ex-UK PM Johnson
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