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Gone quiet · last update Sep 25, 2026 / Russia

Russia's wartime parliamentary election of September 2026

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

Russia held its first parliamentary election since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on September 18-20, 2026, and President Vladimir Putin's United Russia party kept its majority in the State Duma in tightly controlled voting without credible opposition.[1][2] The vote for the first time included residents of Ukrainian regions Moscow illegally annexed, and veterans of the war ran prominently on party tickets.[3][4] Putin called the result a show of support for his policies and urged the military to step up its advance.[5][6]

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The vote for the first time included residents of Ukrainian regions Moscow illegally annexed, and veterans of the war ran prominently on party tickets.[3][4] Putin called the result a show of support for his policies and urged the military to step up its advance.[5][6]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-07-13 (UTC): 2%, 10 of 559 tracked outlets (3 left, 4 center, 3 right)Week of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): 3%, 15 of 545 tracked outlets (2 left, 7 center, 6 right)Week of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): 8%, 37 of 480 tracked outlets (9 left, 21 center, 7 right)Week of 2026-09-21 (UTC): 5%, 24 of 479 tracked outlets (8 left, 11 center, 5 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 7 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (4 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Sep 21, 2026811524 of 4795%
Sep 14, 2026921737 of 4808%
Aug 10, 202627615 of 5453%
Jul 13, 202634310 of 5592%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Sep 25, 2026 · first reported · Headline from The Kyiv Independent

    Putin casts doubt on resuming Ukraine talks, citing mass drone attack during Russian election

Background

Ahead of the vote, the authorities cleared the field. Boris Nadezhdin, the anti-war politician barred from challenging Putin in 2024, was convicted of displaying "extremist symbols,"[7] and the Supreme Court barred Russia's only anti-war party from taking part.[8] Nearly 200 candidates had fought in Ukraine,[4] and the hockey star Alexander Ovechkin drew criticism for appearing in a United Russia ad.[9] Putin's own 2024 reelection is covered in its own arc.

During the voting, authorities reported attacks on voting systems and communication lines,[10] and the liberal Yabloko party said one of its observers lost consciousness while being arrested at a St. Petersburg polling station.[11] Election officials announced that United Russia had retained its majority,[1] and Putin said afterward that Russia had been ready to return to talks but that attacks had changed its calculus.[12]

Supporting stories (12)
  1. The main Kremlin party keeps control of Russian parliament after a carefully orchestrated vote
  2. Russia votes in parliamentary election
  3. Russia holds parliamentary vote in areas it seized from Ukraine in the war
  4. Russia touts candidates who fought in Ukraine for its wartime parliamentary election
  5. Full results from Russia's parliamentary election confirm Kremlin's dominance
  6. Putin Casts Election Result as an Endorsement of His War
  7. A Putin critic is convicted on charges that will keep from campaigning for Russia’s parliament
  8. Russia: Why is the Yabloko party barred from the elections?
  9. NHL top star facing backlash after supporting Putin’s party in Russian elections
  10. Russia reports ‘powerful’ cyberattacks on second day of parliamentary vote
  11. Russian election observer loses consciousness during arrest by police, opposition party says
  12. Putin casts doubt on resuming Ukraine talks, citing mass drone attack during Russian election

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 14 recorded updates

September 2026

  1. Putin casts doubt on resuming Ukraine talks, citing mass drone attack during Russian electionHeadline from The Kyiv Independent · 1 outlet
  2. Putin Casts Election Result as an Endorsement of His WarHeadline from Wall Street Journal · 1 outlet
  3. Full results from Russia's parliamentary election confirm Kremlin's dominanceHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 3 outlets
  4. The main Kremlin party keeps control of Russian parliament after a carefully orchestrated voteHeadline from KOB 4 · 8 outlets
  5. Russian election observer loses consciousness during arrest by police, opposition party saysHeadline from WTOP Washington DC · 6 outlets
  6. NHL top star facing backlash after supporting Putin’s party in Russian electionsHeadline from KTVZ Bend · 7 outlets
  7. Russia reports ‘powerful’ cyberattacks on second day of parliamentary voteHeadline from Al Jazeera · 3 outlets
  8. Russia holds parliamentary vote in areas it seized from Ukraine in the warHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 10 outlets
  9. Moscow targeted by ‘largest ever’ drone attack on final day of Russia’s parliamentary electionHeadline from KION Central Coast · 26 outlets
  10. Russia touts candidates who fought in Ukraine for its wartime parliamentary electionHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 3 outlets
  11. Russia votes in parliamentary electionHeadline from Arkansas Democrat-Gazette · 35 outlets
  12. The Guardian view on Russian parliamentary elections: glimpses of weakness behind the facade | EditorialHeadline from The Guardian · 1 outlet

August 2026

  1. Russia: Why is the Yabloko party barred from the elections?Headline from Deutsche Welle · 21 outlets

July 2026

  1. A Putin critic is convicted on charges that will keep from campaigning for Russia’s parliamentHeadline from The Republic · 10 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →