Russian authorities allegedly concealed alerts during the record drone attack on Moscow to protect voter turnout

Russian authorities in Moscow and the surrounding region allegedly intentionally failed to warn the public during the record drone attack on September 20, so as not to affect turnout in the “elections” for the State Duma, according to an assessment by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), cited by RBC-Ukraine.

On the final day of voting, no warning sirens were activated and no SMS messages about the air threat were sent, although such warnings had previously been issued even in cases of smaller-scale attacks.

Authorities nevertheless restricted mobile communications, one of the measures routinely used in such situations, without providing an official explanation. Residents complained on the Telegram channel of Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov, but the comments section was later closed.

ISW estimates that the authorities prioritized voter turnout over public safety. The attacks targeted oil and logistics infrastructure, not polling stations. Ukraine confirmed that the Moscow refinery had been hit, sparking fires.