Penza, 13 September 2015. PenzaNews. The voter turnout by 18.00 of the Penza region gubernatorial election was calculated at 54.12%, a regional election committee officer informed PenzaNews agency.

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This constitutes a total of 594,078 voters, the committee officer clarified.

Earlier, the overall turnout in the Penza region reached 9.72% by 10.00, 26.09% by 12.00, and 42.98% by 15.00.

However, as no minimum turnout level was set beforehand, the election will be deemed valid regardless of the eventual constituent turnout.

As PenzaNews agency reported earlier, September 13 is the day of the Penza region gubernatorial election, as well as special elections of deputies for local government bodies of several municipalities.

All 1,105 polling stations in the Penza region for the gubernatorial election opened at 8.00. They will remain operational until 20.00, at which point vote counting will begin.

All five officially registered candidates – Ivan Belozertsev (United Russia), Vladimir Simagin (CPRF), Zhigansha Tuktarov (LDPR), Vladimir Popkov (“Rodina”) and Gennady Yeroshin (“A Just Russia”) – have cast their votes in their voting areas before 12.00.

Among the people who did the same before noon are the chairman of the Penza region Legislative Assembly Valery Lidin, the Penza city head Victor Kuvaytsev, the State Duma deputy Igor Rudensky, the former governor Vasily Bochkarev, and the first chairman of the CPRF regional committee, regional Legislative Assembly deputy Georgy Kamnev.