Rumors of mobilization, high prices, gasoline shortages - the problems of Russians are many. But can this threaten Putin and "United Russia" in the elections?
The parliamentary elections in Russia begin on September 18, and although many believe that the results are predetermined, the question of what topics excite voters there is certainly interesting.
To find an answer to this question, a team from the German public media ARD visited the city of Tver. It is located on the railway line between the metropolises of Moscow and St. Petersburg and is one of the oldest cities in Russia. In its center, many old wooden houses with beautiful ornaments have been preserved, but they are in danger of ruin.
A local civic initiative called "Tom Sawyer Fest" after the Mark Twain character, is trying to preserve them. Yaroslav is one of its active participants; after work, he meets with like-minded people to restore the historic buildings in danger of ruin.
Fear of mobilization and high prices
"It is clear that there is great anxiety in society because of rumors of mobilization after the elections," Yaroslav tells ARD. "It is not clear what is happening with gasoline, inflation is quite high. And this is clearly felt in the prices," he adds.
The team of the German publication managed to talk to Tatyana, an elderly Russian woman, at a market on the outskirts of Tver. She receives a pension of about 190 euros per month - slightly below the national average, ARD specifies. From the words of the elderly woman, it is clear that this money is not enough for her: "How can we support ourselves with these prices? This is absolute madness - should we buy food or medicine? And I also have to provide myself with firewood in the winter."
Nevertheless, the "United Russia", which is close to Putin, continues to lead in the attitudes of voters. In the State Duma, it currently has 315 out of a total of 450 deputy seats.
Critics of the war are not allowed to participate in the elections
People in Tver know how important it is to vote. They learned this lesson back in Soviet times, when voting was mandatory, but there were no fair elections. Today, they say they vote voluntarily and for very different reasons.
Pensioner Vadim, for example, wants to support the current government: "I will go because our boys are at war. We must support them. After all, this is our Russia, our grandfathers fought. If I were 40, I would go myself. But now no one needs me," he says.
All the parties that are now allowed to participate in the parliamentary elections want to continue the war and do not criticize Putin's system. "Yabloko" - the only party that is against the armed conflict - was excluded. However, most people in Russia already know that their vote in the elections will not change anything in the system.
"It is better to close our eyes"
Inna, who sells newspapers, is convinced that trust in the state media and the press is very low. "Only in sports publications do the results correspond to the truth. When it comes to politics, everyone knows that there is maybe two percent truth there", she says. There are not many customers anymore - only old people buy newspapers, Ina adds.
On its penultimate page, the local print edition publishes obituaries, and among the deceased there are more and more young men. "There is nothing to be done. We have to endure, to stay alive. After all, we cannot change our country for another. We close our eyes to many things so that we do not suffer too much", says the newspaper seller.
Many men from the countryside agree to go to war, attracted by the promises of good pay. Unlike in big cities, in small towns this is even more noticeable. Especially when men go and never return. "And there are not just many of them, but an awful lot of them. "They're all buried back there - probably five hectares of the field are already filled with our people. And every month they're getting more," says Vadim.
No one knows exactly how many victims there are. The Russian government no longer publishes statistics on the dead. No one else can afford to, as this could be interpreted as deliberate disinformation about the army, which is punishable by up to 15 years in prison. That's why many people in Russia simply keep quiet, adapt, or close themselves off in narrow circles of friends.
The silent majority can't change anything
In Tver's renovated pedestrian zone, an elderly man plays the Russian national anthem on the accordion. People walk past him, enjoying the last warm days of the year. Few of them enter the cultural center.
Since the war began, donations to the project have dropped by 70 percent, says Yaroslav, who runs the cultural center. Visitors have also decreased because many people have left the country: "We decided to just be on the safe side. We had to remove some books because of the political situation after 2022. We don't talk about it publicly. I think everyone understands that there are risks."
Art, architecture and local identity are now the main focuses of the cultural center. Yaroslav no longer invites political scientists. They used to organize lecture series on democracy or history. That's a thing of the past, he says. "People are just tired. And the silent majority wants all these terrible events that are happening right now to end."
People in Russia know that their votes probably can't change anything in the current situation. At most, they support the existing system, concludes Zilke Dietrich's report for ARD.