Russian man given 14 days in jail after writing ‘Putin is a dickhead’ on election ballot
https://novayagazeta.eu/en/articles/2026/09/22/russian-man-given-14-days-in-jail-after-writing-putin-is-a-dickhead-on-election-ballot-en-news
448 points · 60 comments · view on lemmy.world
60 Comments
whyNotSquirrel@sh.itjust.works · 124 pts · 1d
Oh, must be a good democratic voting system if you can know who did it, full transparency! nothing to hide if you did vote for the good one!
Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus · 33 pts · 1d
He posted a video of it. This means that:
tourist@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 1d
what happens when a protest ballot catches the vote counter off guard because it's really fucking funny
brad_troika@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 13h
Please read the article before posting a comment. Headlines are intentionally written in a way to attract your attention often omitting key factors. Especially if a headline seems egregious it's worth to check if the article itself has more information that would answer some obvious questions, like in this case where a blogger already known by the secret service posted a video about the voting ballot. It is still a shitty thing to happen, elections are by no means free in Russia.
Red_October@piefed.world · 84 pts · 1d
Meanwhile when I say Putin is a Dickhead, all I get is banned from .ml for the effort.
SatansMaggotyCumFart@piefed.social · 28 pts · 1d
Banned - rule 1
Klear@piefed.world · 6 pts · 1d
[removed]
Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus · 10 pts · 1d
Which should be enough of a warning sign for all of us - these instances are controlled by the FSB, or at least their bootlickers.
Nasan@sopuli.xyz · 2 pts · 5h
hey now, SVR deserves a lot more credit.
mattyroses@lemmy.today · -1 pts · 5h
So, by that logic, lemmy.world is controlled by the NSA?
Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus · 1 pts · 3h
nope, lemmy.world is controlled by neolibs.
CharlesDarwin1809@piefed.world · 56 pts · 1d
But Lemmy.ml told me that Russia is a democratic paradise where the friendly Mr Putin is only in power because nearly all Russians love him and vote for him? Unlike the evil West where democracy doesn't exist, and elections are just a figment of my imagination.
Chl0r0f0rm_Angel@sh.itjust.works · 14 pts · 1d
Oh god you're going to summon them
CharlesDarwin1809@piefed.world · 17 pts · 1d
They're always lurking around the corner, ready to insist that your country is evil and that Russian imperialism is a good thing actually...
peopleproblems@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 1d
Because they are emancipating ethnic Russians from Nazis!
Wish I were making that up.
Gormadt@slrpnk.net · 6 pts · 1d
peopleproblems@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 1d
That's half the fun! I think in 2016 it was discovered that the Kremlin Shill's goal is to engage and basically waste your time, gives them the opportunity to spew propaganda.
So a reasonable choice is to not engage. However, they have a very distinct lack of discussion points. And they are very easily countered if you're autistic and deep dived enough into it for the past 12 years.
When you keep a cool head about it, you can get them to start going in circles and they devolve into insults.
Counter-troll trolling if you will. Always fun to bring out the whiny child in them. (For a very recent example, check my comment history lol).
chocrates@piefed.world · 8 pts · 1d
Didn't that one maga family emigrate to Russia and they were shocked?
frongt@lemmy.zip · 12 pts · 1d
More than one https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/6/30/800062711/world/right-wing-familys-move-to-russia-bad-time/
ThePyroPython@lemmy.world · 45 pts · 1d
His honourary English citizenship is in the mail. Come on, calling a politician a dickhead is a national pass-time here, it's unfair to jail someone for it.
pHr34kY@lemmy.world · 13 pts · 1d
I'm remembering that one time the NSW parliament in Australia passed a motion that Eddie McGuire was a boof-head.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-06-03/eddie-mcguire-a-boofhead-for-adam-goodes-remarks-nsw-upper-house/6518824
idiomaddict@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 1d
Anti-aboriginal sentiment is very weird to me as a non-Australian: sometimes it feels subtle (like calling a war dance aggressive and unpleasant- that’s kind of the goal and shouldn’t be a wild thing to say) and sometimes they just call aboriginal people King Kong.
It’s always a great object lesson on not playing devil’s advocate (because I could see myself defending someone calling a war dance aggressive, but I would 100% regret that choice with the additional context).
Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works · 40 pts · 1d
Getting jailed for it kinda proves the point. I think this guy is onto something.
d00ery@lemmy.world · 30 pts · 1d
How do they know who he is? Surely ballot papers are anonymous
Babalugats@feddit.uk · 29 pts · 1d
He only got 14 days in case it was the wrong person.. /s
d00ery@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 20h
Yah ok, I only read the post and comment. A cursory look at the article would have provided the answer. 😅
comrade_twisty@feddit.org · 7 pts · 1d
Pretty easy: They are only anonymous if you vote for the right person, if you make a mistake and don’t check Putin it gets reported.
Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus · 4 pts · 1d
He posted a video of it.
AceFuzzLord@lemmy.zip · 29 pts · 1d
I'm a little shocked it's just a prison sentence and not conscription.
Jackinopolis@sh.itjust.works · 18 pts · 1d
I'll be shocked if he doesn't get recruited from his cell when the scheduled draft comes on October 1st.
Sludgehammer@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 1d
I'm sure the jail sentence is just to soften him up for conscription.
Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus · 3 pts · 1d
I'm sure they tried - but as long as you don't put your signature down (even if tortured), it probably won't happen, at least for now. Putin loves to do everything "by the books" - that's also why this election happened at all. He wanted a rubber stamp legitimizing the shit he's pulling.
Edit: they will keep pressuring him in jail for sure too. Those two weeks will be the longest of his life.
Honytawk@discuss.tchncs.de · 2 pts · 1d
Maybe they don't have family anymore that the government can use to extort them into fighting.
magnue@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 13h
That comes with the sentence. A freebie if you will.
frongt@lemmy.zip · 0 pts · 22h
That's the trick. First make him a prisoner, then conscript the prisoners.
ClassifiedPancake@discuss.tchncs.de · 16 pts · 1d
A very dickhead thing to do.
el_twitto@lemmy.zip · 12 pts · 1d
I wonder how long before writing "Trump is a dickhead" on a ballot will get you jail time.
Duhtocqueville@ttrpg.network · 11 pts · 23h
Nah cuz ballots are cast secretly. So there’s no way to know who wrote it. Some 100% safe and fine. No worries friend. Just relax. Everything is fine. Shh.
CrimeIsLegalNow@ani.social · 5 pts · 22h
Just don't ask what's on that QR code.
frongt@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 22h
Photographing a ballot is illegal, regardless of how you mark it, so doing what this guy did is illegal in the US already.
OldChicoAle@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 23h
Lol snowflakes. Did someone hurt your itty bitty feelings? Awww poor baby!!!
DarkCloud@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 1d
That's a real dickhead move Putin.
finallymadeanaccount@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 1d
But ... Putin is a dickhead!
My_IFAKs___gone@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 1d
Worth it
MumboJumbo@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 5h
However, it did have Putin's name on it, so it got counted as a vote for Putin.
Edit: Presidential elections are every 6 years. Last was in 2024, next is 2030. Doesn't my comment make me look a fool.
Nasan@sopuli.xyz · 4 pts · 5h
Since all ballots have Putin's name on it, by default, all votes go to Putin.
WindyRebel@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 5h
Yes, but this one had his name twice so it counts as two votes!
samus12345@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 5h
Not an issue, the vote for him gets saved and added the next time an "election" comes around.
Treczoks@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 1d
I wonder how they knew it was him...
But as things are moving in the US, expect similar treatment if you write 'Trump is an idiot' in your midterm ballot. Or vote for the Democrat.
frongt@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 1d
He did it on video in public
mattyroses@lemmy.today · 1 pts · 5h
which is already illegal in the US
feannag@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 1d
Nah they'll invalidate the ballot saying it was an illegal modification and can't be counted.
affenlehrer@feddit.org · 5 pts · 1d
1Pimmel?
MonsterMonster@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1d
He's not wrong.
urthoughtsrbad@lemmy.zip · -7 pts · 1d
Same shit happening in USA. Same, exact, identical, shit.
“Yeah but that person is poorer than me so I’m okay with it and it doesn’t count.”
Thanks for wanting to refute this Amerikkkan but I got your worthless position covered.
Edit for people from reality with me:
https://www.aclu.org/cases?issue=free-speech
And here’s a write up on a Russian org that is similar to the aclu:
https://inclo.net/members/agora/
chellomere@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 1d
You end up in jail if you write "Trump is a dickhead" on a voting ballot in the US?
Honytawk@discuss.tchncs.de · 3 pts · 1d
Guy got an ego, but the laws don't give him the power to do so.
urthoughtsrbad@lemmy.zip · -3 pts · 1d
ayyy@sh.itjust.works · 7 pts · 1d
This…literally doesn’t happen in the US. There’s pleeeeeeeenty of stuff to criticize, so why make up bullshit? It weakens your cause.
ChunkMcHorkle@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 22h
It's an eighteen-day-old account here just in time for the midterms, making shit up for the lulz. These accounts don't care how ridiculous they look as long as their comments get engagement: if they can't influence Americans with their obviously made up bullshit, they can influence non-Americans with their made up bullshit.
It's just more misinformation in a shitty dollar-store wrapper. Blocked.
urthoughtsrbad@lemmy.zip · 0 pts · 6h
Made up bs? Go post a video of yourself with your actual name calling Trump a dickhead and tag your local police department.
See how it goes for you.
SreudianFlip@sh.itjust.works · 0 pts · 1d