Putin won’t lose Russia’s election, but his grip on power could be weakened | Olga Chyzh

Even sham elections need to be conducted effectively - get them wrong and they can jeopardise a whole regime

In December, Vladimir Putin finally ended any suspense by announcing his candidacy for a fifth term as Russia's president. With a blend of resignation and cynicism, the world will watch as the country gears up for another presidential election" - a term I employ with the heaviest of quotation marks.

In the lead-up to the election, Russia will undergo a cosmetic transformation. Streets will be cleaned, buildings given a fresh coat of paint and pensioners handed their electoral encouragement: a free meal. On the day of the election, students and state employees will be herded to polling stations to perform their most important job: voting in an orchestrated display of fealty to Putin.

Olga Chyzh researches political violence and repressive regimes. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto