MISCOUNTING

Russian Voter Fraud Alleged

107 percent turnout in one Chechen precinct.

Vladimir Putin did well in Russia’s election Sunday. Even in Chechnya, where electoral-commission officials counting ballots were heard murmuring, “Putin, Putin, Putin. Good, more Putin.” Elections often aren’t monitored in the region, and allegations of election fraud, which are common, have a tendency to get lost in the court system, if they make it that far. While the effect of Chechnya’s turnout may have been minimal on the national level, the numbers are illustrative of deep-rooted tendencies—the region saw 99.59 percent turnout, with 99.82 percent of those voters casting their ballots for Putin. The numbers from Chechnya seemed to prove the allegations of a crooked election.