"The CEC's appeals and campaign to promote elections and promote voting is absolutely legitimate, is conducted in accordance with the current electoral legislation. Therefore, these speculations are absolutely groundless," Peskov told journalists, answering the question whether the "persistent appeals" by the CEC and leadership of many companies to raise the turnout at the upcoming presidential elections were violating the election legislation, and how the Kremlin evaluated the statements that high turnout "played into the hands" of Putin.
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Russia's presidential election will take place on March 18.
There are eight candidates running for president this year: Sergey Baburin from the All-People's Union party, Communist Party candidate Pavel Grudinin, Putin, Civil Initiative party candidate Ksenia Sobchak, Communists of Russia party chairman Maxim Suraykin, Presidential Commissioner for Entrepreneurs’ Rights Boris Titov, co-founder of the Yabloko party Grigory Yavlinsky and head of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia Vladimir Zhirinovsky.