Russian occupation claims drone-delivered Duma ballots to Oleshky while city starved under blockade
The head of the Russian occupation election commission in Kherson Oblast, Marina Zakharova, told the Russian state agency TASS that ballots for Russia's State Duma elections were delivered by drone to the occupied city of Oleshky, in coordination with the "Dnieper" military grouping. Oleshky has been described as on the brink of humanitarian catastrophe, with no food deliveries since late May 2026 and Russian forces reportedly blocking evacuations. The occupation authorities provided no evidence that elections actually took place there.
Key points
- Marina Zakharova, head of the occupation election commission of Kherson Oblast, told TASS that Duma ballots were delivered by drone to Oleshky during the 18–20 September elections.
- Zakharova said the commission coordinated closely with the Russian "Dnieper" military grouping.
- No evidence was provided that Duma elections actually took place in Oleshky.
- Oleshky is described as in a humanitarian blockade and on the brink of catastrophe, with the last supplies received at the end of May 2026.
- Russian military are reported to be preventing residents from leaving the city.
- On 20 September, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said Russia is deliberately creating a humanitarian catastrophe on the occupied left bank of Kherson Oblast, blocking food, medicine and evacuations.
- PACE and the European Parliament have declared the new Russian State Duma illegitimate because elections were held on occupied territory.
Why it matters
The claim of drone-delivered ballots to a starving, blockade-enclosed city illustrates how Russia staged formal electoral procedures in occupied territory while civilians were cut off from food and evacuations. Zakharova's admission of close coordination between the occupation election commission and the "Dnieper" military grouping points to a direct link between electoral staging and military operations in Kherson Oblast. Western institutions including PACE and the European Parliament have already rejected the legitimacy of the new State Duma because elections were held on occupied territory, and the Oleshky episode sharpens that case.
What happened
Marina Zakharova, head of the Russian occupation election commission of Kherson Oblast, told the Russian state news agency TASS that ballots for the 18–20 September 2026 Russian State Duma elections were delivered by drone to the occupied city of Oleshky. She said members of the commission cooperated closely with the Russian military grouping "Dnieper" to carry out the delivery, and that residents were able to exercise their voting rights "despite difficult humanitarian circumstances." The occupation administration provided no evidence that elections actually took place in the city.
Oleshky has been described as in a humanitarian blockade and on the verge of catastrophe, with the last supply of food reaching the city at the end of May 2026 and residents reportedly starving since. Russian forces have been reported as preventing civilians from leaving. On 20 September, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Russia is deliberately creating a humanitarian catastrophe on the occupied left bank of Kherson Oblast, blocking deliveries of food and medicine, obstructing humanitarian missions and civilian evacuations, and attacking civilians with drones.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Both Ukrainian-language outlets frame the drone-ballot claim as a piece of Russian staging rather than evidence of a genuine vote, emphasizing that the occupation administration offered no proof that elections actually took place in Oleshky. They pair that claim with the city's humanitarian situation — starvation since the end of May 2026, blocked evacuations and Russian forces preventing civilians from leaving — to underline the contrast between procedural electoral theater and civilian suffering.
Where reporting differs
The two Ukrainian-language sources give different estimates of how many people remain in Oleshky and the surrounding district: hromadske cites more than 6,000 people including about 200 children, while Бабель cites roughly 2,000 people including 50 children.
Background
Oleshky had a pre-invasion population of roughly 24,000 and now sits in a gray zone near the front line, with Russian forces reportedly preventing residents from leaving. On 16 September, Ukraine's Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets said Russia had long failed to confirm readiness for an evacuation mission; afterward, the Ukrainian military delivered food to Oleshky residents by drone twice, including nearly 400 packages of food, medication and children's kits totaling about 4 tonnes. Russian State Duma elections took place on 18–20 September 2026.