Russian schools to hold lesson on country’s electoral system and its ‘absolute objectivity’

On September 25, Russian schools will hold a lesson in the Education Ministry’s patriotic “Important Conversations” series that will be dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the country’s Central Election Commission. The lecture will focus on the “absolute objectivity” of Russia’s elections.

The government’s official lesson plans, which have already been published online, instruct teachers to tell students that “the opinion of every voter is taken into account” in Russia’s electoral system and that the results of the country’s elections are “absolutely accurate and objective.”

The materials also include instructions for students to hold their own “elections.” Middle school and high school teachers are told to have their students vote on what new piece of infrastructure to build in their school, while younger students will vote on a president for a “fairytale country” from a candidate list that includes Winnie the Pooh and Baba Yaga.