To understand the threat to our real democracy, watch Putin's fake one | Rafael Behr
A billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026. Photograph: Ramil Sitdikov/ReutersView image in fullscreenA billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026. The purpose of the exercise is to maintain Vladimir Putin’s authority over the political process, which means United Russia, the president’s party, will retain control of the Duma.That much is settled before the polls open, although the scale of the government’s victory won’t be declared until the votes are counted.
- ▪A billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026.
- ▪Photograph: Ramil Sitdikov/ReutersView image in fullscreenA billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026
- ▪The purpose of the exercise is to maintain Vladimir Putin’s authority over the political process, which means United Russia, the president’s party, will retain control of the Duma.That much is settled before the polls open, although the sca
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| Original publisher | The Guardian — Politics |
| Canonical URL | https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/16/threat-britain-fake-democracy-russia-vladimir-putin |
| Publication time | Wed, 16 Sep 2026 04:00:11 GMT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-16T04:23:39.364Z |
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A billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026. Photograph: Ramil Sitdikov/ReutersView image in fullscreenA billboard displays portraits of the deputy chair of the state Duma, Pyotr Tolstoy, and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, promoting the United Russia party, Moscow, 15 September 2026. Photograph: Ramil Sitdikov/ReutersOpinionRussiaTo understand the threat to our real democracy, watch Putin’s fake oneRafael BehrAs Russians vote this weekend, remember that Britain is not immune to the cynical tactics and corrosion of trust that keep him in powerWed 16 Sep 2026 00.00 EDTShareMillions of people will participate in elections in Russia this weekend and a…
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