State servants' stories about coercion to vote explain Kadyrov's words about 95% turnout

Ramzan Kadyrov's statement about the veracity of the voter turnout on the vote on constitutional amendments looks unconvincing amid stories of state servants about coercion to vote, social network users assert.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 1, the vote on amendments to the Constitution, which began on June 25, was over in Russia. According to the Central Election Commission (CEC), the maximum turnout in Russia was in Chechnya – 95%.

The head of Chechnya has thanked residents of his republic for their active participation in the vote and said that the CEC's data on 95% of turnout and 98% of those who supported constitutional amendments "is not an (artificially) painted picture," as follows from the report shown in the nightly news programme of the "Grozny" ChGTRK (Chechen State TV and Radio Company).

Employees of some budget-funded organizations in Chechnya told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that it was demanded from them to attract their relatives to vote for the constitutional amendments.

"Our boss told us that there was an order from the top managers that not only all the employees should vote, but also their family members and other relatives. Therefore, we were obliged to attract as many people as possible to the vote, and as a confirmation, take photos at polling stations with ballots in hands. Naturally, it was necessary to vote exclusively in favour of the amendments," Djabrail, a resident of Chechnya, said, in particular.

"We were asked not to vote on our own, but also to involve our relatives and friends in it. There was an order that the turnout should exceed 90%, as they later announced," Fatima, a resident of Chechnya, has confirmed.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 05, 2020 at 05:38 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.