Ukraine charges Russian officials over holding sham election in captured areas

That’s according to the SBU press center, Ukrinform reports.

"The Security Service has documented new crimes committed by the head of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, Ella Pamfilova, who is complicit in waging a war of aggression against Ukraine," the report said.

According to the investigation, the official organized large-scale falsification of the "results" of illegal elections in the temporarily seized territories of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions this fall.

She engaged two of her subordinates to her illegal activities - Kremlin political technologist Pavel Andreev, who had in 2021 been appointed representative of the Russian Central Election Commission, and his colleague Lyudmila Markina.

At the direction of Pamfilova, they took part in the creation of territorial electoral committees and artificial legitimization of a sham plebiscite.

For this purpose, both parties voted for the creation of pseudo-electoral institutions in the captured part of Ukraine with the involvement of local collaborators.

After the pseudo-elections, Pamfilova's subordinates personally certified the fabricated results of the forced "expression of will".

"It was also established that the head of the Russian Central Committee directly organized the financing of the occupation ‘election committees’, including ‘salaries’ for their staff the costs of producing ‘ballots,’” the report said.

In addition, on her behalf, Andreev created for media audiences the image of a legitimate "election process" going on in the occupied regions of Ukraine.

To this end, he organized hoax reports, which simulated the large numbers of voters at the polls and also involved staged comments from local residents allegedly in support of Kremlin’s "candidates".

Based on the evidence gathered, the SBU charged the said individuals in absentia for participation in the war of aggression and conspiracy toward the encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine.

Since those accused are now in Russian territory, comprehensive measures are being taken to bring them to justice for crimes against Ukraine.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Security Service of Ukraine charged the chief of Russia’s Central Committee, Ella Pamfilova, for organizing sham elections in the temporarily captured areas of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions.