Remote e-voting

Remote electronic voting (REV, or DEG in Russian) is voting on a special Internet portal. Russian citizens can submit an application to participate in remote electronic voting through the electronic government services portal Gosuslugi ("State services"). A person who chooses the REV method must be excluded from the voting lists at the polling station.

REV has been introduced in 2021, gradually increasing the number of regions where it is implemented. In the 2024 Russian presidential elections, REV will be used in 28 regions. In total, around 4 million voters decided to use REV in the 2024 presidential elections (data as of the first day of the three-day voting period).

Observers and opposition politicians note that the REV system is not transparent and there are numerous opportunities for electronic falsifications (similar to the Moscow e-voting system). There are practically no opportunities for independent observation when REV is used. The source code of REV is not accessible to observers and independent experts due to the security pretext. Although there is no full understanding of the potential for fraud in REV, observers note increasing pressure primarily from employers on employees to vote using REV. However, it is worth noting that in 2023, the results obtained through electronic polling stations did not differ significantly from the results of voting at polls.