Yet another sham election in Russia: The upcoming ballot for the ninth State Duma

Sabine Fischer

No 38/2026, SWP Comments from Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP), German Institute for International and Security Affairs

Abstract: So far, 2026 is not proving a good year for the Putin regime. The front line in Ukraine is barely moving, Ukrainian drones and missiles are striking targets deep inside Russian territory, the economy is faltering and public sentiment is deteriorating. Under these difficult conditions, the Kremlin administration has to engineer another victory for the ruling United Russia party, as the State Duma elections are due to take place from 18 to 20 September. Yet the Russian parliament is scarcely able to fulfil its function as a source of legitimacy in Putin's personalised dictatorship. This is evident both from the chronic weakness of the parties loyal to the regime and from the farcical circumstances surrounding the exclusion of the Yabloko party from the election.

Keywords: State Duma; manipulation; Kremlin; russian parties; United Russia; UR; Yabloko; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia; LDPR; Commu (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:swpcom:344116

DOI: 10.18449/2026C38

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