Statement in Support of the Independent exit poll project during the 2026 State Duma “elections”
September 9, 2026
As a member of the Platform for Dialogue with Russian Democratic Forces at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and a Russian politician, I am calling for support for the independent exit poll project launched by the Russian democratic movements Vesna and Progress.
The project aims to conduct an independent survey of Russian citizens living abroad about how they voted in the State Duma “elections” and to obtain additional information about the real will of voters that is independent from the Russian state authorities.
At a time when the Russian authorities are systematically destroying independent election monitoring, restricting the activities of political opposition, and preventing meaningful public oversight of “elections”, creating free mechanisms for assessing the will of voters is especially important.
Why this matters
Today, Russian citizens cannot simply leave Russia and expect to retain the ability to freely express their political views.
The Russian authorities are trying to target their political opponents and citizens who oppose the war and authoritarian policies even outside the country.
We are seeing public statements by Russian officials and lawmakers against independent election-related initiatives.
For example, after the launch of the exit poll project, State Duma MP Nikolai Piskaryov publicly called the initiative a "provocation".
At the same time, new restrictions on Russian citizens abroad are being discussed. There are proposals to restrict demonstrations near Russian diplomatic missions, while Central Election Commission Chair Ella Pamfilova has publicly spoken in favor of restricting the political rights of Russians who have left the country.
Statements by Russian officials must not be left unanswered
Exit polls as a tool of civic oversight
When there is no trust in official vote-counting mechanisms, an exit poll can be one of the ways to preserve a public record of how citizens actually voted. This can be one of our responses.
What I propose
I call for support for the initiative of Vesna and Progress to conduct independent exit polls during the 2026 State Duma “elections”.
Supporting the project will help demonstrate that:
Russian citizens are determined to defend their right to freely express their political views regardless of where they live;
civil society demands that the authorities create independent mechanisms for election oversight;
citizens who oppose the regime do not want their votes to disappear because of election fraud or attempts by the Russian authorities to restrict the political activity of Russians abroad;
European institutions can help promote democratic values in Russia through Russian civil society in Europe.
I call on everyone who shares these principles to join this statement and sign it.
Lyubov Sobol