Moscow's election officials say the Duma vote runs 'without violations'. Vot Tak says polling stations threw out an anti-war candidate's observers

The official account. Interfax, Regnum and Life.ru quote the same man: Dmitry Reut, deputy chair of Moscow's city election commission. Interfax and Regnum give his words as "без нарушений" (without violations). Life.ru gives them as "в штатном режиме" (running normally) and says the commission "records no problems". So the three outlets carry one voice. Regnum credits the "no violations" line to a public observation headquarters.

The other account.

Outlet	What it reports	Its source
Vot Tak	Moscow polling commissions expelled observers sent by anti-war candidate Yulia Kuznetsova	one removed observer; the legal project Slovo Zashchite
Mediazona	A St Petersburg court jailed Oleg Petrov for 10 days over posts about the Communist Party's observer project	the city courts' press service
OC Media	Public employees in Dagestan say they were pressured to vote United Russia; a Yabloko candidate withdrew, citing threats	not named in the text we hold
Kyiv Post	Yabloko "was barred"	not named

Turnout. Life.ru and Vedomosti report turnout above 20% on day one. Life.ru gives 20.03% at 15:39 Moscow time. Both figures come from the Central Election Commission alone.

What is not settled. No official is quoted answering any complaint. We could not confirm that Kuznetsova has disappeared. That claim comes from one politician, cited by Vot Tak. The reports disagree on Yabloko. Kyiv Post says the party was barred. OC Media reports a Yabloko candidate withdrawing, so at least one was standing. Neither says which races.

What this is. Russia is electing the State Duma, its lower house of parliament, over three days. This story is about whether that vote is being run fairly.

How it got here. The Duma has 450 seats. It is elected every five years; the last election was in September 2021. United Russia has held a majority since the 2000s. It is the party that backs President Vladimir Putin. Since 2020, Russian votes have been spread over several days. Critics say that makes independent watching harder, and officials say it makes voting easier. Russia invaded Crimea and eastern Ukraine in 2014, then launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Since then, laws against "discrediting" the army have been used against critics of the war. Many independent outlets now report on Russia from exile. That makes this the second Duma election held while the full-scale war goes on.

Who is involved. Election commissions run the vote at every level, from the Central Election Commission down to each polling station, and they publish the turnout figures. Candidates and parties may send observers to polling stations. The Communist Party, the second-largest party in the Duma, runs its own observer project. Yabloko is a liberal party founded in 1993 that opposes the war. It has not held Duma seats since 2003. Dagestan is a republic in Russia's North Caucasus.

What is at stake. The Kremlin points to turnout and a clean count as proof that the vote is legitimate. Critics quoted by Kyiv Post say the vote offers little competition and could produce a more militarised parliament. If observers are removed, the only record of a polling station is the one its own commission keeps.

Where it stands. Voting began on 18 September and runs for two more days. There are no results yet.

What is being argued about

Whether Moscow's vote is clean: one official says yes, one removed observer says observers were expelled
Workplace pressure on public employees in Dagestan, and a Yabloko candidate who withdrew
A 10-day jail term over posts about a party's observer project
Turnout above 20%, from the Central Election Commission alone

One vote, two accountsSide by side

Outlet	What it says about the vote	Who says it
Interfax	'Without violations'; 1.8 million have voted	Dmitry Reut, Moscow election commission
Regnum	'Without violations'	Public observation headquarters; Reut quoted on the count
Life.ru	'Running normally'; no problems recorded	Dmitry Reut, Moscow election commission
Vot Tak	Commissions began removing Kuznetsova's observers	One removed observer; Slovo Zashchite
Mediazona	10-day arrest over posts about a party's observer project	St Petersburg courts' press service
OC Media	Dagestani public employees say they were pressured to vote United Russia	Not named in the text we hold

Three outlets carry one official, Dmitry Reut. No report puts a complaint to an official.

Sources I Interfax R Regnum L Life.ru V Vot Tak M Mediazona O OC Media

Claims and verdicts

disputed The Duma vote in Moscow is proceeding without violations.

Interfax, Regnum and Life.ru all quote one official, the deputy chair of Moscow's election commission, Dmitry Reut, so it is one account. Vot Tak reports that polling-station commissions in Moscow expelled observers sent by the anti-war candidate Yulia Kuznetsova, citing one observer who was removed and the project Slovo Zashchite.

Checked against 4 sources:

I Interfax R Regnum L Life.ru V Vot Tak

disputed Yabloko was barred from taking part in the Duma election.

The Kyiv Post summary says Yabloko was barred. OC Media reports that a Yabloko candidate withdrew, citing threats to his family, which implies at least some Yabloko candidates were running; neither report says which races or which lists.

Checked against 2 sources:

K Kyiv Post O OC Media

unverified Two candidates were left off the ballot in Kirov region, and those elections were moved to 2027.

Mediazona, citing the Communist Party's press service, reports that candidates from the Communist Party and the Pensioners' Party were left off the regional ballots. The Insider's headline adds that the error was found after voting began and that the vote moved to 2027, but we hold no text giving its source, so we cannot tell whether it is a second account.

Checked against 1 source:

T The Insider

Who wrote it

Н Никита Никонов Life.ru

What the bias passes found in their reporting

Actor unnamed Says the deficit 'will be closed' without saying by whom×1

Assertion vs attribution The same motive is attributed to a named official and marked as her opinion×1

Attacker named flat, no attribution the drones are stated to be Ukraine's without a source for that×1

Damage without a cause the plants are damaged in the passive and there is no attack and no attacker in the sentence×1

Claims we checked that rest on their reporting

9 unverified3 true

From 1158 reports we hold under this byline, at Life.ru. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →

В Владимир Озеров Life.ru

What the bias passes found in their reporting

Epithet carried into the lede The report repeats Medvedev's insult for Ukraine's leaders in the lede, in quotation marks, and names him as the source.×1

Framing The headline leads with readiness to talk. The condition, an end to fighting, appears only in the body.×1

Headline asserts a judgement States as fact that Tusk put Kyiv above Polish dead. The dead are 'thousands', with no number and no one named as killing them.×1

Headline exceeds body The headline asserts that Tusk put shared aims above Polish dead. The lede reports only that he said historical disputes should not block cooperation.×1

Claims we checked that rest on their reporting

1 misleading1 disputed1 unverified3 true

From 1223 reports we hold under this byline, at Life.ru. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →

К Ксения Наумчик Vedomosti

What the bias passes found in their reporting

Attribution figure stated flat with no source named, and tied to 2027×1

Headline only This report holds a headline with no body, so all it tells a reader is the central bank's announcement.×1

Measure chosen turnout given as a share, before the vote has opened, with no counter named×1

No actor named passive voice, no seizing body named×1

Claims we checked that rest on their reporting

7 unverified

From 986 reports we hold under this byline, at Vedomosti. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →

E Elizaveta Chukharova OC Media

What the bias passes found in their reporting

No actor named Threats are reported with no one named as making them.×1

Who is named as acting The candidate who withdrew is not named. Neither is whoever made the threats.×1

Claims we checked that rest on their reporting

1 disputed

From 47 reports we hold under this byline, at OC Media. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →

А Александр Шепелев Vot Tak

What the bias passes found in their reporting

Actor named names Ukraine's armed forces in the headline and Ukrainian drones in the text×1

Attribution The only report giving €1.35bn credits the figure to Reuters, not to either government.×1

Figure chosen Gives €1.35bn, sourced to Reuters, where most reports give Zelensky's €1.3bn×1

Headline beyond body The headline says 12 students were hurt. The body says 12 people, most of them students.×1

Claims we checked that rest on their reporting

1 misleading1 disputed2 true

From 65 reports we hold under this byline, at Vot Tak. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →

The bylines on the reports this story is built from. Hover one for what our passes have measured on their reporting. · 5 reports we hold carry no byline — we do not invent one.

Coverage, outlet by outlet

L Life.ru —

Явка на выборах в Госдуму превысила 20%

Central Election Commission turnout: 20.03% at 15:39 Moscow time on day one.

В течение дня показатель заметно увеличивался. На 11:16 мск явка составляла 6,1%, а к 13:25 мск достигла 10,09%. Голосование началось 18 сентября и продлится три дня — до 20 сентября включительно. Россиянам предстоит избрать 450 депутатов Госдумы на пятилетний срок: 225 мандатов распределяются по партийным спискам, ещё столько же — по одномандатным округам. В выборах по федеральным спискам участвуют десять партий. Впервые депутатов Госдумы выбирают жители ДНР, ЛНР, Запорожской и Херсонской областей. В регионах, где действует военное положение или средний уровень реагирования, предусмотрены доп

Measure chosen: Turnout to two decimal places, sourced to the Central Electoral Commission, stands in for how the vote is going — “По состоянию на 15:39 мск она составила 20,03%”

Read it at Life.ru → https://life.ru/p/yavka-na-vyborah-v-gosdumu-prevysila-20

T The Insider — exile

В Кировской области забыли вписать в бюллетень двух кандидатов. Ошибку обнаружили после старта голосования и перенесли выборы на 2027 год

Headline only: two candidates were left off a Kirov region ballot, the error was found after voting began, and that vote moved to 2027.

На выборах депутатов Законодательного собрания Кировской области в бюллетени забыли вписать сразу двоих кандидатов-одномандатников: Эдуарда Пластина от КПРФ и Ивана Пискунова от «Партии пенсионеров». Как сообщили в местной избирательной комиссии, ошибка обнаружилась после старта голосования, поэтому выборы по одномандатному округу № 25 решили перенести на год. Как заявила председатель избирательной комиссии Кировской области Галина Буркова, произошла «техническая ошибка». Голосование на выборах депутатов местного Заксобрания началось 18 сентября, однако пришедшие на участки граждане не обнаруж

Read it at The Insider → https://theins.ru/news/297267

L Life.ru —

Мосгоризбирком: Выборы в Госдуму в столице проходят штатно

Reut says the vote is 'running normally' and the commission records no problems.

«Никаких проблем мы не наблюдаем. Всё в порядке», — сказал Реут. Выборы депутатов Госдумы проходят в течение трёх дней, с 18 по 20 сентября. В Москве избиратели могут проголосовать на участках либо воспользоваться городской системой электронного голосования. Ранее Life.ru сообщал, что утром 18 сентября в столице и Подмосковье открылись избирательные участки для голосования на выборах в Госдуму. В Москве начали работу 1443 участка, а число избирателей превышает 7,8 млн человек. Главные заявления властей и события внутри страны — в разделе «Политика России» на Life.ru.

Measure chosen: 'No problems' is measured only by what the commission itself records — “каких-либо проблем комиссия не фиксирует”

Read it at Life.ru → https://life.ru/p/mosgorizbirkom-vybory-v-gosdumu-v-stolitse-prohodyat-…

V Vedomosti —

Явка на выборах депутатов Госдумы превысила 20%

Headline only: turnout passed 20%.

Явка на выборах депутатов Государственной думы девятого созыва достигла 20,03% к 15:39 мск, следует из данных ЦИК России. По состоянию на 15:18 мск явка была на уровне 15,17%. В 13:25 мск показатель составлял 10,09%. Избирательные участки по всей стране открылись 18 сентября и проработают до воскресенья, 20 сентября. Они открыты с 8:00 по 20:00 мск. В Подмосковье явка на избирательных участках к 15:00 мск составила 7,16%. При дистанционном электронном голосовании (ДЭГ) этот показатель достиг 58,3%. Президент России Владимир Путин проголосовал на выборах в онлайн-формате. Глава государства сдел

Read it at Vedomosti → https://www.vedomosti.ru/politics/news/2026/09/18/1230009-yavka-na-vibo…

M Mediazona — independent

Жителю Петербурга назначили 10 суток ареста за посты о проекте КПРФ по наблюдению за выборами «Красный контроль»

A St Petersburg court jailed Oleg Petrov for 10 days for 'displaying banned symbols' in posts about the Communist Party's observer project.

Новости Сюжеты Онлайны Тексты Дата Подкасты Поддержать Поддержать Новости Сюжеты Онлайны Тексты Дата Подкасты Измена и шпионаж Хроники войны Дела о военных «фейках» Дело ФБК «Дискредитация» армии Диверсии Все темы Новость 18 сентября 2026, 15:57 Жителю Петербурга назначили 10 суток ареста за посты о проекте КПРФ по наблюдению за выборами «Красный контроль» Красногвардейский районный суд Петербурга арестовал на 10 суток местного жителя Олега Петрова по протоколу о демонстрации запрещенной символики. Об этом сообщила объединенная пресс-служба судов города. Согласно материалам административного д

Person named: The man sentenced is named, and so are the court and the offence. — “арестовал на 10 суток местного жителя Олега Петрова”

The affected named: Names the man jailed over election-monitoring posts and the court that jailed him — “арестовал на 10 суток местного жителя Олега Петрова”

Read it at Mediazona → https://zona.media/news/2026/09/18/control

O OC Media — independent

Daghestani public service employees claim pressure to vote for United Russia

Public employees in Dagestan say they are pressured to vote United Russia; a Yabloko candidate withdrew, citing threats to his family.

North Caucasus Daghestani public service employees claim pressure to vote for United Russia by Elizaveta Chukharova (Updated: about 4 hours ago)• 4 min read Share ▲The voting in the North Caucasus. Photo: Chechen-news.ru. As polls in Russia’s first parliamentary elections since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine prepared to open, public sector employees in Daghestan claimed to independent media outlet Caucasian Knot that their superiors pressured them to vote for a ‘particular party’ — presumably the ruling United Russia party. In another violation, a candidate for the anti-war Yabloko party i

No actor named: Threats are reported with no one named as making them. — “citing threats against him and his family”

Who is named as acting: The candidate who withdrew is not named. Neither is whoever made the threats. — “A candidate for the anti-war Yabloko party has also withdrawn, citing threats against him and his family.”

Read it at OC Media → https://oc-media.org/daghestani-public-service-employees-claim-pressure…

I Interfax —

Мосгорзбирком сообщил, что в столице проголосовали уже больше 1,8 млн избирателей

Reut says voting in Moscow runs 'without violations' and more than 1.8 million have voted, counting every way of voting.

Мосгорзбирком сообщил, что в столице проголосовали уже больше 1,8 млн избирателей Москва. 18 сентября. INTERFAX.RU - Выборы в Москве проходят без нарушений, на настоящий момент проголосовали более 1,8 млн человек, сообщил зампред Мосгормзбиркома Дмитрий Реут. "В данный момент уже проголосовали более 1,8 млн человек, именно столько москвичей сделали свой выбор всеми удобными способами", - сказал Реут. По его словам, в электронном виде проголосовали 1,7 млн человек, бумажные бюллетени выбрали около 100 тысяч. Руководитель Общественного штаба по наблюдению за выборами в городе Вадим Ковалев сообщ

Official claim sole voice: 'Without violations' is stated in the lead before the attribution. The only voice is the deputy head of the city election commission. — “Выборы в Москве проходят без нарушений, на настоящий момент проголосовали более 1,8 млн человек”

Claim leads, attribution trails: The official's 'no violations' opens the sentence as fact. His name comes at the end. — “Выборы в Москве проходят без нарушений”

Read it at Interfax → https://www.interfax.ru/moscow/1116914

R Regnum —

Более 1,8 млн человек проголосовали на выборах в Москве — Мосгоризбирком

Credits the 'no violations' line to a public observation headquarters, not to the commission.

Выборы в Москве проходят без нарушений. Об этом сообщили в Общественном штабе по наблюдению за выборами. «В данный момент уже проголосовали более 1,8 млн человек — именно столько москвичей сделали свой выбор всеми удобными способами», — отметил заместитель председателя Московской городской избирател...

Attribution to monitor body: The same 'no violations' line, here credited to a public observation headquarters rather than to the commission. — “Выборы в Москве проходят без нарушений. Об этом сообщили в Общественном штабе по наблюдению за выборами.”

Read it at Regnum → https://regnum.ru/news/4062509

K Kyiv Post —

New Duma: Do the Russians Have a Choice?

Says Yabloko was barred; critics it cites say the vote offers limited competition.

In brief: Russia’s three-day parliamentary elections will elect the 450-member Duma, regional lawmakers and governors. United Russia is widely expected to win, while Yabloko was barred from participating. Critics and analysts cited in the article argue the vote offers limited competition, serves to reinforce the Kremlin’s legitimacy, and could produce an increasingly militarized parliament amid the war in Ukraine. Make us preferred on Google Flip Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied A man casts his ballot for Russia's parliamentary election at a polling station in Mosc

Unattributed forecast: The outcome forecast is hedged as 'widely expected', with no one named as expecting it. — “United Russia is widely expected to win”

Read it at Kyiv Post → https://www.kyivpost.com/post/84839

V Vot Tak —

В Москве с участков выгнали наблюдателей антивоенной кандидатки Юлии Кузнецовой. Накануне выборов она исчезла, а в ее округе баллотируется «ветеран СВО»

Moscow commissions began removing Yulia Kuznetsova's observers, one of them says; politician Nikolai Toropov says she and her husband have disappeared.

Участковые избирательные комиссии в Москве 18 сентября начали выгонять наблюдателей, которых направила антивоенная кандидатка в депутаты Госдумы Юлия Кузнецова. Об этом «Вот Так» рассказал один из снятых наблюдателей. Об аналогичных случаях стало известно и проекту «Слово защите». Политик Николай Торопов поздно вечером 17 сентября сообщил, что Кузнецова и ее муж Вадим исчезли, сейчас их местонахождение неизвестно.

Single unnamed source: The expulsion of observers is stated flat in the lead. It rests on one unnamed removed observer, and the commissions are not quoted. — “рассказал один из снятых наблюдателей”

Single source claim: The expulsion of observers rests on one removed observer, plus a legal-aid project — “Об этом «Вот Так» рассказал один из снятых наблюдателей.”

Read it at Vot Tak → https://vot-tak.tv/95456578/yulia-kuznetsova-propala

Checked, didn’t cover

M Meduza R RIA Novosti T The Moscow Times S Suspilne U Ukrainska Pravda U Ukrinform N Novaya Gazeta Europe

Silence is recorded, not inferred — each of these was read when we built this story and carried nothing on this event.

We could not read these

T TASS

These are must-cite outlets for this desk that we did not manage to read when we built this story. That is a gap in our reach, not a silence on their part, and it is not evidence of anything about this story.

Read another desk

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Moscow's election officials say the Duma vote runs 'without violations'. Vot Tak says polling stations threw out an anti-war candidate's observers

What is being argued about

Two accounts that never meet

Claims and verdicts

Who wrote it

Coverage, outlet by outlet