Russia Elections 2026 began as Ukraine launched more than 350 drones towards Moscow.
United Russia is certain to win the most seats in the 450-member State Duma.
Ukraine also reported strikes on a Yaroslavl oil refinery and a military airfield in Rostov.
Ukraine launched a barrage of drones on Moscow and other Russian regions on Friday as Russia opened voting for parliamentary elections for the first time since the Kremlin invaded its neighbour, with the ballot expected to gauge public support for the ongoing war.
The three-day election for all 450 seats in the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, comes as Ukraine continues to use drone attacks to bring the impact of the conflict home to Russians, while Russian forces carry out air strikes against Ukraine's economic and military infrastructure. According to Al Jazeera, the election is being closely watched for signs of public support and frustration over the conflict, although parties and candidates openly opposed to the war have largely been excluded from the ballot.
More than 350 Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow on Friday morning, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported on social media. He said most of the drones had been destroyed at an outer defensive perimeter, including 64 that were shot down as they approached the capital.
The drone barrage came as polls opened in Russia's Far East. Kamchatka and Chukotka, on the Pacific, were the first of Russia's 11 time zones to begin voting. Polling will continue until 18:00 GMT on Sunday, while Moscow has also organised voting in occupied parts of Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin's United Russia party, which has dominated Russian politics since 2000, is certain to win the most seats. However, the margin of its victory and the number of seats secured by other parties are being closely watched.
Opposition excluded from Russia election
Only political parties that back the war have been registered to run. Yabloko, the sole party opposing the conflict, was barred from the ballot in August.
With protests banned and no antiwar candidates standing, the vote offers the Kremlin a measure of public support and frustration with a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people since February 2022.
According to Al Jazeera, Ukraine has sought to bring the effects of the war home to Russians through almost nightly drone attacks on energy and economic infrastructure. The strikes have caused billions of rubles in damage.
Kyiv, like Moscow, maintains that it does not target civilians. However, civilian deaths have also been reported deep inside Russia.
Strikes reported in other Russian regions
Alongside the attack on Moscow, Ukrainian forces hit the Yaroslavl oil refinery overnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He also reported that a strike on a military airfield in Rostov damaged military aircraft and helicopters.
“There have also been good results in the Black Sea,” he said on social media without providing further details.
The attacks came as Russian forces continued to use air strikes against Ukraine's economic and military infrastructure in an effort to disrupt support for Kyiv's continued defence.
Russian strikes
The Russian Defence Ministry said on Friday that its forces had struck a logistics hub belonging to Ukrainian postal company Nova Poshta near the Black Sea port city of Odesa. It also said a cargo vessel in the nearby port of Chornomorsk had been hit.
The ministry said both strikes were carried out for military purposes.
A Russian drone attack on Friday morning injured five people, including three children, in the Kyiv region, Governor Tymur Tkachenko said on Telegram.
Russia said on Thursday that it had targeted three drone manufacturing facilities and the De Novo data centre near Kyiv. The Russian Defence Ministry described the facility as the “largest centre ensuring the operation of server equipment used for military purposes”.
