Referendum: Putin can be Russia’s president until 2036 [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• The Kremlin declared on Wednesday that Russians had approved to change its constitutions, thereby giving President Vladimir Putin the chance to reset the presidential term limit and pursue reelection in 2024 and 2030.
• Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the election proceeded all week as scheduled which allowed staggered voting — at least 1,000 new coronavirus cases were reported each day during the election.
• Putin’s popularity dropped to its lowest rate in two decades at 59 percent due to his mishandling of the COVID-19 crisis.

The Kremlin declared on Wednesday that voters had moved to amend its constitution, according to Associated Press report. This could make Vladimir Putin remain as Russian president until 2036.

The referendum enables Putin to reset the presidential tenure limit, which allows him to pursue reelection once his current term finishes in 2024. In the past, Russian presidents could serve two six-year terms.

To some extent, Putin had already gone beyond the term restriction by becoming the Prime Minister in 2008 to 2012, while Dmitry Medvedev, his crony, served the presidency.

Since the legislative body already approved the referendum last mid-March, the incumbent president did not even need to flex his muscles to invoke the 206 constitutional changes — which supports the image he wanted to showcase in public that he had strong support from them.

However, the issue on prioritizing the referendum over the government’s plan for the coronavirus pandemic surfaced, as he scheduled the referendum on April 22, which pushed back the pandemic meeting to July 1.

According to the AP, as the pandemic began, polls were open all week that allowed staggered voting. Each day of election, at least 1,000 new coronavirus infections were being recorded.

Due to his COVID-19 mishandling, Putin’s popularity dropped to its lowest point in 20 years at 59 percent. Yet, he still managed to get reelected.

Early Wednesday, Kremlin officials said that 73 percent of voters had approved the changes, based on the CNN report. The figures came mostly from Siberia, while voting in Moscow and St. Petersburg were still ongoing. The official tally barely had a difference with the initial results.

According to CNN, protesters flocked the Moscow’s Red Square and spelled out the numbers “2036,” as they contested the election’s validity and the continued leadership of Putin. Based on an Independent Russian media, the activists were briefly jailed but were not charged with crimes.

Based on the monitoring by independent observers, the recent voting was not as comprehensive as Putin’s reelection in 2018. However, it still produced physical ballot box equipment, protections against voter fraud, and suspiciously high turnout.

As of now, Putin has not publicly announced his intention to run for reelection in 2024 (and for 2030).

Source: AOL.com