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Russia touts candidates who fought in Ukraine for its wartime parliamentary election

Election officials say nearly 200 Duma candidates served in Ukraine as the Kremlin promotes veterans as part of Russia’s “true elite.”

  • Russia begins three days of voting for the State Duma and regional elections on September 18, as voters grapple with the ongoing war in Ukraine and economic strain.
  • President Vladimir Putin and his administration reengineered the 450-seat State Duma into a rubber-stamp legislature, while Russians face growing frustration with the war, which has continued for more than 4 1/2 years.
  • First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko launched the Time of Heroes program two years ago to train veterans for public service, and at least 200 veterans qualified for the ballot.
  • Authorities barred Boris Nadezhdin from the ballot on an anti-war platform, though opposition figures Navalnaya and Maksim Kats released an endorsed candidate list and Yabloko remains the only party opposing the war.
  • An unspoken question looms over the balloting: will the Kremlin order another nationwide call-up? British officials estimate at least 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed, with at least 1 million wounded.
Insights by Ground AI

63 Articles

Lean Right

Russia's first parliamentary elections in wartime aim to integrate veterans into the regime, minimize the annexation of territory in Ukraine, and give the public the illusion of normality.

·Lisboa, Portugal
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(Istanbul=Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Dong-ho = TASS and RIA Novosti reported on the 16th (local time) that a large number of Russian war veterans are running in the general election.

·Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
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Lean Right

Russia puts a striking number of war veterans in position. They are supposed to secure the Kremlin's course within parliaments and offices.

·Berlin, Germany
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  • 45% of the sources are Center
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Radio Free Europe/ RadioLiberty broke the news in Prague, Czechia on Tuesday, September 15, 2026.
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