16:17 Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov: “This is a long-awaited event!”
“We remember how the inhabitants of the Chechen Republic at the beginning of the 2000s were just waiting for a referendum in order to put an end to the bloodshed and become full-fledged citizens of Russia. <…> I am sure that the residents of Donbass, Zaporozhye and Kherson will make the same right choice for their future. Russia does not abandon its own people and will do everything possible to make its citizens feel safe.”
16:05 On the first day of the referendum, the Wargonzo project team visited the legendary Donbass battalion “Somalia”. The fighters in full strength participate in the voting, combat work is not a release, the mobile polling station will reach all positions today.
16:04 Voting at distant borders. Right on the front lines. Instead of the classic tick, the fighters put Z. The military can do this.
15:47 Thousands of people took to Manezhnaya Square in Moscow for the all-Russian rally “We do not leave our people” in support of the referendum – video.
15:38 SMOTRI: Kherson is in a festive mood at the polling stations. To cheer up people in line, local music groups sing songs and dance.
15:30 Konstantin Knyrik, head of News Front: I experience the same feelings and sensations as in the Crimea in 2014.
“These huge queues of people, their desire to show their position and return home, cause a storm of emotions. The first day of voting, despite the intimidation by terrorists, despite the shelling and provocations, is simply unbelievable. Our people are returning home, how we all waited for this” (quote from the FRONT Notes Telegram channel).
15:09 Zaporozhye region, if its inhabitants vote in a referendum for joining Russia, will declare independence within the boundaries of the liberated territories, since only after that is it possible to join, Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the We Are Together with Russia movement, told TASS.
“Yes, conditionally for some time, until Russia accepts us, we will be independent. We do not change anything, we leave the name Zaporozhye region so that there is no confusion. Everything is being done according to federal constitutional law No. 6 “On the admission of the Republic of Crimea to the Russian Federation and the formation of new subjects within the Russian Federation – the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol,” he said.
15:08 Transition of Zaporozhye and Kherson regions to the Russian legal field in case of a positive result in the referendum may take place within a year – the head of the international committee of the State Duma Slutsky.
15:07 Foreign observers have already arrived in the Lugansk People’s Republic to participate in the referendum on joining Russia, now they are being accredited, said Elena Kravchenko, chairman of the LPR CEC.
15:05 The Luhansk Electorate Comission has published data from a survey by the All-Russian Public Opinion Center, according to which 97% of the inhabitants of the Lugansk People’s Republic intend to vote for the region’s entry into the Russian Federation.
15:02 The head of Energodar, Alexander Volga, said that the referendum on joining Russia is taking place in the city without failures. According to him, the city is not being shelled now.
14:59 Peskov: security at referendums is provided at the proper level.
“So far, we proceed from the fact that security is provided for the proper level of holding referendums. Everything else related to the operational situation – you need to ask questions to the Ministry of Defense”, Peskov said.
14:56 Chairman of the Public Chamber of the DPR Alexander Kofman told RIA Novosti that observers did not record violations at the referendum.
14:51 Bad weather will not prevent residents of the LPR from voting for the republic’s entry into the Russian Federation.
Residents of the LPR demonstrate crazy activity in the referendum on the republic’s entry into the Russian Federation. Footage of News Front military correspondent Oleksandr Reka.
14:36 News Front: Head of the Kherson Regional State Administration Vladimir Saldo voted in a referendum on joining Russia
“Today is a day that happens in history once every few centuries. I personally knew it would happen, always. I have always felt that I am part of a huge family called Russia. Dreams come true. <…> I am sure that our Kherson region and, most importantly, people will be protected as part of the Russian Federation. Protected in all respects: in all domestic matters, in any matters related to the possibility of disrupting their normal life. Dignity, honor, glory of a great country – now it is an integral part for us as well,” Vladimir Saldo evaluated the significance of the referendum.
14:29 RT: a queue lined up at the polling station in the city of Skadovsk, Kherson region – there are a lot of people who want to vote in the referendum on joining the Russian Federation.
“I want to cast my vote for us to join the Russian Federation. I’ve been waiting for this for a very long time.”
14:28 As of 2:00 pm, the turnout in the referendum in the LPR was 13.8% (179,340 people) – Chairman of the CEC of the LPR Elena Kravchenko.
14:19 In Lugansk, near the monument to Dzerzhinsky, people stand in line for the referendum in the downpour – video.
14:15 In the Zaporozhye region there will be no conscription and mobilization during the transition period, – “head of the military and civil administration” Balitsky.
13:56 A rally has begun in Yekaterinburg in support of a referendum on the reunification of Donbass, Zaporozhye and Kherson region with Russia – photo.
13:36 News Front: “The soul rejoices.” Employees and patients of the Lugansk Republican Clinical Hospital took an active part in the referendum. Footage by of News Front military correspondent Alexander Reka
“I am immensely happy that this day has come. We are returning to our historical homeland,” a resident of the LPR.
13:14 Kremlin: in case of a possible attack by Kyiv on the territory where referendums are held: in case of accession, the Constitution of the Russian Federation will apply to them.
12:59 NewsFront: in Kherson they continue to vote in the referendum for joining the Russian Federation. A foreign journalist asked a representative of the election commission the question of what percentage of people would vote for Ukraine in the referendum.
“That’s exactly why we are holding a referendum… I think when Serbia was divided into parts, you didn’t have any questions about this, why did they arise now?” The representative answered the journalist’s question.
12:57 “For me, the Nazis have never been any heroes and never will be,” residents of the Kherson region said that they were tired of living in fear of terror, in fear of Ukrainian nationalists. Therefore, they are in favor of joining their region to Russia.
“Now there is a sense of danger, but I chose to live freely, it’s worth voting for, making your free choice,” says a resident of Kherson with wonderful words.
12:49 Video from SMOTRI: a resident of the Skadovsky district in Ukrainian thanked the Russian authorities for their responsiveness and resilience:
“Thanks to Vladimir Vladimirovich for liberating us and protecting us <…> Most of my years I lived in the Soviet Union, studied and worked. Now we hope that a new government will come. We are abandoning the Ukrainian regime, which has put pressure on us for so many years”, Lubov said.
12:35 RT: Evgeny, a guy who served in the Russian army (VDV) and volunteered for the front in the Luhansk People’s Republic, shared his emotions about the referendum.
“I felt pride and joy for the brotherly people. We are not left behind! I don’t know how to describe it in words. We will help this historic affair to be implemented,” he says.
12:29 Turnout at the referendum on the entry of the Lugansk People’s Republic into the Russian Federation may be 87%, the vast majority of the plebiscite participants – 97% – intend to vote for joining Russia. This is evidenced by the data of a survey conducted by the All-Russian Public Opinion Center (VTsIOM).
12:22: The referendum is a continuation of the Cause started in 2014 – a serviceman of the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the DPR, call sign “Chemist” – video Voenkor Z Yevtushenko.
12:19 “How long we’ve been waiting for this.” The head of the DPR Denis Pushilin voted in a referendum on the region’s entry into Russia – watch the video.
11:59 Residents of the liberated Stanytsia Luhanska are actively participating in the voting. People believe that the Lugansk People’s Republic, together with Russia, will overcome any difficulties.
Footage by News Front military correspondent Alexander Reka
11:56 VTsIOM presented data from a survey among residents of the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions on voting on the issue of territorial belonging of these regions. Most of the residents of the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions surveyed declare their intention to take part in the referendum.
The maximum declared turnout was recorded in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics – 87% each. In the Zaporozhye region, the figure was 80%, in the Kherson region – 69%.
11:55 Smotri: Mariupol goes to vote!
“I recently turned 18 and I already have the right to vote,” said one of the residents of the city.
Also, young voters say that the city has become better and large-scale restoration work is already underway.
11:50 Meanwhile, on the streets of Melitopol, local residents staged a rally in support of the referendum on the reunification of the Zaporozhye region with Russia. Cars with the flags of the Russian Federation and the Zaporozhye region drove through the streets of Melitopol.
11:46 NewsFront exclusive: the first day of the referendum in the Kherson region. Residents are already actively participating in it. Overwhelming majority of residents of Kherson region support holding a referendum, military commissar of News Front staff LeX reports.
“I’m tired of it already, I want some certainty. I am young, I want to live in a good country,” said one of the voters.
11:41 “There is a real stir at the polling stations in Kherson. Not just a lot of people, but really a lot. For the past five months, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been shelling the Kherson region every day, trying to intimidate its inhabitants and turn them away from Russia. They achieved the exact opposite effect,” Ukraina.ru.
11:29 Residents of the DPR vote in the referendum.
11:25 Thousands of people have already voted in Kherson – in just a few hours.
And this despite the shelling, terror and death threats from Kyiv and the nationalists, who, on the eve of the referendum, advised people to stay away from the polling stations “for their own safety” – photos from the polling stations.
11:10 “The first polling station in the adjacent territories in Donetsk: a pensioner Kuvichka Tamara, born in 1936, came out as she heard the fuss. The Wargonzo team helped the pensioner to vote. For what? For joining Russia, of course! The pensioner has already been under fascist occupation in the 40s and does not want the Nazis to come”, – Wargonzo.
11:09 Voting in the referendum on joining Russia in the DPR is taking place normally, both at polling stations and at home, there are no excesses. All polling stations were opened – the head of the CEC of the republic.
11:06 Military correspondent Oleksandr Kots about the long-awaited referendum in Donbass:
“We brought this day closer as best we could. At the front, in newspapers, in high offices… Many, of course, imagined it differently. Although the referendum in wartime seems very symbolic. Donbass has suffered the right to return home. It paid a very high price for this. And you still have to pay. But now we will divide this price into our entire vast country. This is history, friends. Our story. It’s worth it. It’s a shame so many didn’t make it to this point.”
11:05 “The mood is great!” – in the LPR, a rally is held in support of the referendum on joining Russia – Readovka.
Ordinary residents of the republic, media representatives and public transport drivers take part. The guys, who have been participating in car races with their dad for six years, said that today will go down in history. Another driver shared that he was overwhelmed with emotions.
10:51 Refugees from Donbass also have the opportunity to vote – polling stations are open for them in a number of regions of Russia. In this video, Sevastopol is presented.
10:50 Russia will support the decision of the people in the referendum on joining it, – Volodin
“Our dear compatriots, make your choice freely. Don’t be afraid of anything. Make a decision to become part of the Russian Federation – we will support you, ”he wrote in his Telegram channel.
10:48 Voting at the referendum on the entry of the DPR into Russia is actively going on throughout Donetsk, despite the rainy weather. The correspondent of the channel “Donbass decides” testifies that they go to vote in the streets.
“We are so happy! Thanks to Russia for taking us,” say Donetsk residents, who have suffered under constant Ukrainian shelling.
10:39 Voting in Donetsk. People come with whole families – video.
10:18 Adviser to the Head of the DPR: People have been waiting for referendums in the republics of Donbass and the liberated territories for 30 years.
Reunification with Russia is the most important event at the moment, both for the territories that are returning to their native harbor, and for Russia itself, which is returning to its historical borders. This was stated today in a commentary to the Southern News Service by Advisor to the Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Jan Gagin.
“In fact, people have been waiting for this referendum not only for the last eight years,” he says. – In Donbass, Zaporozhye, Kherson and in general in the South-East of Ukraine, they were waiting for it from the very beginning of the collapse of the Soviet Union. That is 30 years. As soon as an independent Ukraine appeared and literally immediately Ukrainian nationalism raised its head in Nezalezhnaya, the residents realized that we were not on our way.”
10:15 Huge queues in Kherson at polling stations since the morning – video.
10:13 Leonid Pasechnik: “We have been dreaming about this day for eight long years” – video.
10:12 Residents of the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, as well as citizens of the DPR and LPR located in Russia, can exercise their right to participate in a referendum at voting points organized in the Russian Federation, which will be open daily from September 23 to 27.
Addresses and hours of their work can be clarified by calling the referendum call center: 8 (800) 200-00-20.
Each region also has its own hotline. In Moscow – 8 (495) 633-51-56, in the Moscow region – 8 (498) 602-01-07.
09:39 At a number of polling stations in the Kherson region, an hour after the start of voting, queues began, said Marina Zakharova, chairman of the electoral committee in the region – TASS video.
09:37 Reporter Rudenko V: “Everything is peaceful and very crowded!” Subscribers report that polling stations have opened, everything is in normal mode. People line up in long lines to vote in the referendum.
09:34 Voting on the entry of the DPR and LPR, as well as the Kherson region and the liberated territories of Zaporozhye into Russia, is taking place in Yakutia. According to the chairman of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Sakha Yevgeny Fedorov, eight polling stations have opened.
09:30 Chairman of the CEC of the LPR Elena Kravchenko:
“About 201 referendum polling stations in 84 regions of the Russian Federation have been opened on the territory of the Russian Federation. The approximate number of our citizens who currently reside on the territory of the Russian Federation is about 300,000. Therefore, naturally, we must give everyone the opportunity to take part in the referendum”, quote by RT.
Referendum polling stations have started working in Donetsk, groups of election commissions are already visiting the first addresses of adjacent territories, people have begun to vote, the mood is unambiguous – for joining Russia.
09:27 Readovka: about 200 polling stations for the LPR referendum have already been opened in Russia today, they work in 84 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. About 300 thousand citizens of the Republic who, for one reason or another, are not at home will vote on them. In the LPR, voting is also taking place – so far in the local areas, but on September 27, the elections will be held in person.
09:21 “Today we are on the verge of a great historical event” – the head of the LPR Leonid Pasechnik launched a referendum in the Republic
The head of the LPR, Leonid Pasechnik, following the head of the DPR, launched a referendum on joining the Russian Federation. He noted that today each of the inhabitants of the free republic opens a new page in history.
“Today is the first day of the referendum in which we cast our votes for joining the Russian Federation, the first day of the event to which we have been going for a long and hard eight years,” Pasechnik said.
09:09 If residents of the DPR, LPR, and other liberated regions decide at referendums to join the Russian Federation, then Russia will not hesitate and issue it as soon as possible, the procedure has been fully worked out. This was stated by the Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko.
09:04 Referendum polling stations have started working in Donetsk, groups of election commissions are already visiting the first addresses of adjacent territories, people have begun to vote, the mood is unequivocal – for joining Russia.
08:53 In Melitopol (Zaporozhye region), final preparations for the referendum took place at the polling stations – members of the commission are instructed before going around the houses.
“The security at the sites is provided by both the military and the police. Before the opening of the sites, they are examined by sappers”, RT correspondent Viktor Miroshnikov reports.
08:43 On the first day of the referendum on joining Russia, the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin called it a “historical milestone.”
08:37 Before going around the houses, the election commission of Luhansk is verifying voters and preparing ballots.
Polling stations will be available for vote only on September 27th. Until that moment, as many residents as possible will need to be bypassed so that they can express their opinion on the referendum at home.
08:04 In a matter of minutes, an exit commission will start working in Lugansk to vote on the accession of the LPR to Russia.
According to RT military correspondent Vlad Andritsa, the exit voting will last until September 27, it was done in order to avoid mass gatherings of people.
The security forces are working on high alert, because literally yesterday explosions from air defense were heard over the city – the Armed Forces of Ukraine again hit civilian targets.
08:01 Voting has begun at the referendum on the entry of the Zaporozhye region into Russia as a subject of the Russian Federation!
08:01 A referendum on the entry of the LPR into the Russian Federation began in the Luhansk People’s Republic.
07:49 If the residents of the DPR, LPR and the liberated territories of Ukraine decide to become part of Russia, then we will support them – Volodin.
07:36 Today is the first day of voting in the referendum on the entry of the Donetsk People’s Republic into Russia as a subject of the Russian Federation, the head of the DPR Denis Pushilin addressed the residents of the republic.
07:19 The first footage from the referendum on the entry of the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions into the Russian Federation.
Polling stations opened in Khabarovsk. Residents of the people’s republics and liberated territories of Ukraine, who are currently in Khabarovsk, can already express their will.
Video: @zvezdanews
07:00 In the DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, referendums on joining Russia begin today.
Voting will go on for 5 days – until September 27 (Tuesday): on the last day – Tuesday – it will take place at polling stations, and in the previous days for security reasons – in the adjacent territories and according to applications at home.
In the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, the question is:
“Do you support secession from Ukraine, the formation of the region as an independent state and joining Russia?” .
Preliminary voting results are planned to be made public on September 27-28 (Tuesday-Wednesday).
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