Friday, March 15, was a sunny day for voting in Korolyov, a medium-sized town of 230,000 inhabitants on the outskirts of Moscow. In front of polling station number 1056, set up in the massive building of the House of Culture, 75-year-old Yulia Sergeyevna was savoring the moment before returning to her home, a stone's throw away. "You have to do your duty as soon as possible, not put things off," said the elderly woman, who had dressed up for the occasion. "That's how I was brought up, in the Komsomol [Communist youth movement] and then in the Party."

The practice of voting over three days is only four years old – it was introduced during the 2020 constitutional referendum, the referendum which now allows Vladimir Putin to run for another presidential term – but for some citizens, it's already a tradition.

Despite her communist past, Sergeyevna was not voting for that party's candidate, Nikolay Kharitonov, but for Putin. "I like the way he deals with people," she said. "He's a good listener and never lies. Take Tucker Carlson. Putin gave him an interview when all the other leaders refused, and now the Americans all know that our metro is cleaner than theirs."

'The only one who can bring peace'

Among the Putin voters Le Monde met on this first day of voting, Sergeyevna was something of an exception. Rather than discuss the geopolitical situation, she more spontaneously cited domestic achievements, praising the incumbent leader's record. "The stadium has been rebuilt, the swimming pool renovated... And the president has promised that the next term will be devoted to social difficulties. Have you visited the new museum in the House of Culture?" The establishment is dedicated to Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, a local hero and father of the Soviet space program.

Like many Russians, the pensioner, herself a former employee of the Space Flight Control Center, unhesitatingly supported the actions of the Kremlin leader and his army in Ukraine, while saying she hoped for an end to hostilities as soon as possible. "He's the only one who can bring peace," believed the septuagenarian. "All the other leaders have 'shit themselves', so there's nothing to expect from them."

Alexandre P., another 66-year-old pensioner who has worked in "all kinds of jobs since the age of 17," said he also hopes, without really believing it, "that all this will end within the year." However, he put the "special military operation" in Ukraine down to Putin's record: "We are Russians, we don't abandon our people to the fascists," he summed up, blaming the West for the outbreak of the conflict.

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