Russians crowded outside polling stations at noon Sunday on the last day of a presidential election, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin in a vote that offered them no real alternatives after he ruthlessly cracked down on dissent.
Shortly after the last polls closed in Russia, early returns pointed to the conclusion everyone expected: that Putin would extend his nearly quarter-century rule for six more years. According to Russia's Central Election Commission, he had 87% of the vote with about 90% of precincts counted.
The extraordinary early results -- which Putin hailed as an indication of "trust" and "hope" in him -- were another reflection of the preordained nature of the election. The Russian leader only faced competition from three token rivals and any public criticism of him or his war in Ukraine was stifled.
Putin's fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic prison last month, and other critics are either in jail or in exile. Unusually, Putin referenced Navalny by name in a news conference after polls closed. And he said he was informed of an idea to release the opposition leader from prison days before his death. Putin said he agreed to the idea on condition that Navalny didn't return to Russia.
Independent monitoring of the election was extremely limited.
In a tightly controlled environment with little room for real protest, Navalny's associates urged those unhappy with Putin or the war to go to the polls at noon Sunday -- and lines outside a number of polling stations inside Russia and at its embassies around the world appeared to swell at that time.
Among those heeding the call was Yulia Navalnaya, Navalny's widow, who joined a long line at the Russian Embassy in Berlin as some in the crowd applauded and chanted her name.
She spent more than five hours in line and told reporters after casting her vote that she wrote her late husband's name on the ballot.
Asked whether she had a message for Putin, Navalnaya replied: "Please stop asking for messages from me or from somebody for Mr. Putin. There could be no negotiations and nothing with Mr. Putin, because he's a killer, he's a gangster."
Putin brushed off the effectiveness of the apparent protest.
"There were calls to come vote at noon. And this was supposed to be a manifestation of opposition. Well, if there were calls to come vote, then ... I praise this," he said at his news conference.
Some Russians waiting to vote in Moscow and St. Petersburg told The Associated Press that they were taking part in the protest, but it wasn't possible to confirm whether all of those in line were doing so.
Meanwhile, supporters of Navalny streamed to his grave in Moscow, some bringing ballots with his name written on them.
Meduza, Russia's biggest independent news outlet, published photos of ballots it received from their readers, with "killer" inscribed on one, "thief" on another and "The Hague awaits you" on yet another. The last refers to an arrest warrant for Putin from the International Criminal Court that accuses him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.
After polls closed, Putin said the protests had no effect and that any crimes would be punished.
Some people told the AP that they were happy to vote for Putin -- unsurprising in a country where independent media have been crippled, state TV airs a drumbeat of praise for the Russian leader and voicing any other opinion is risky.
Voting took place over three days at polling stations across the vast country's 11 time zones, in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine and online. While polls closed Sunday night in Russia, voting continued at some embassies around the world.
Despite tight controls, several dozen cases of vandalism at polling stations were reported across the voting period.
Dmitry Medvedev, a deputy head of the Russian Security Council chaired by Putin, called for toughening the punishment for those who vandalize polling stations, arguing that they should face treason charges.
Stanislav Andreychuk, co-chair of the Golos independent election watchdog, said pressure on voters from law enforcement had reached unprecedented levels.
Russians, he said in a social media post, were searched when entering polling stations, there were attempts to check filled-out ballots before they were cast, and one report said police demanded that a ballot box be opened to remove a ballot.
The OVD-Info group that monitors political arrests said 80 people were arrested in 20 cities across Russia on Sunday.
That left little room for people to express their displeasure, but Ivan Zhdanov, the head of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, said the opposition's call to protest had been successful.
"The action has shown that there's another Russia, there are people who stand against Putin," he said.
Beyond Russia, huge lines also formed around noon outside diplomatic missions in London, Berlin, Paris, Milan, Belgrade and other cities with large Russian communities, many of whom left home after Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Protesters in Berlin displayed a figure of Putin bathing in blood with the Ukrainian flag on the side, alongside shredded ballots in ballot boxes.
Russian state television and officials said the lines abroad showed strong turnout.
Voters queue at a polling station at noon local time in Moscow, Russia, on Sunday, March 17, 2024. The Russian opposition has called on people to head to polling stations at noon on Sunday in protest as voting takes place on the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. AP can't confirm that all the voters seen at the polling station at noon were taking part in the opposition protest. (AP Photo)
A woman walks to cast her ballot at a polling station during a presidential election village of Chikcha, Tyumen municipal district, western Siberia, Russia, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Voters in Russia are going to the polls for the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. (AP Photo)
A child casts his parent's ballot as a police officer guards at a polling station during the presidential election in St. Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Voters in Russia are going to the polls for the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
People hold sheets reading "enough" as they protest in downtown Tbilisi, Georgia, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Russians at home and abroad are heading to the polls for a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. (AP Photo/Nicolo Vincenzo Malvestuto)
Russians living in Switzerland gather in front of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland, Sunday, March 17, 2024. The Russian opposition has called on people to head to polling stations at noon on Sunday in protest as voting takes place on the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. AP can't confirm that all the voters seen at the polling station at noon were taking part in the opposition protest.' (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks on a visit to his campaign headquarters after a presidential election in Moscow, early Monday, March 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
A woman casts a ballot as a police officer guards at a polling station during the presidential election in St. Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Voters in Russia are going to the polls for the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures while speaking on a visit to his campaign headquarters after a presidential election in Moscow, Russia, early Monday, March 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
A woman holds her pet as she leaves a voting booth during a presidential election in the Pacific port city of Vladivostok, 6,416 km (3,987 miles) east of Moscow, Russia, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Voters in Russia are going to the polls for the last day of a presidential election that is all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's rule after he clamped down on dissent. (AP Photo)