In Moscow, the 2023 mayoral election drew a rapid and sizable turnout, with observer reports indicating that about 1.35 million people cast ballots within the first 11 hours of voting. This figure emerged from the Moscow election observation headquarters and was cited by news agencies to capture the pace and scale of participation on election day. The early turnout underscored a high level of public engagement in the municipal race, even as analysts noted the complex logistics involved in processing a flood of ballots across multiple precincts and timelines.
Earlier in the proceedings, Vyacheslav Volodin, who leads the State Duma, participated in the voting process using the electronic voting terminal at his polling station, a feature highlighted this election cycle as a notable innovation. The use of the electronic system underscored the trend toward digitizing participation, with officials positioning TEГ (the electronic voting terminal) as a modern tool designed to streamline the ballot casting and result recording process within designated polling places.
Officials emphasized that the head of the State Duma exercised his vote through the TEГ installed at the polling station, noting it as one of the year’s notable election innovations. This observation reflected broader efforts to integrate electronic voting components into formal ballots, while authorities also stressed the importance of maintaining transparency and security across all voting stages, including verification steps and post-election audits that accompany the digital format.
Across Russia, September 8 marked the start of elections at multiple levels, with more than 4,000 campaigns taking place across 85 regions. The electoral calendar saw participation from upwards of 81,000 candidates seeking seats at various levels of government. The sprawling schedule included contests in Moscow, the Moscow region, and, for the first time, in newly incorporated regions, signaling a broad expansion of electoral activity within the federation. Polling across most races was arranged in a three-day format, culminating on the national Single Voting Day scheduled for September 10, a structure designed to concentrate turnout and simplify logistics for voters and officials alike.
In retrospective summaries, authorities noted that the early hours of voting had already produced turnout exceeding one million, signaling strong voter interest in the day’s elections. As the process unfolded, observers and analysts followed turnout trends, the performance of the electronic voting systems, and the consistency of ballot handling across precincts, all while ensuring that the electoral procedures adhered to established standards for fairness and accuracy. The data gathered in these initial hours provided initial indicators for the overall participation pattern and the functioning of the voting infrastructure during this major multi-step electoral event.