Penza, 15 September 2015. PenzaNews. The members of the Penza region election committee have confirmed the results of the September 13 gubernatorial election and named Ivan Belozertsev the elected head of the region, during the one-point-on-schedule meeting held on Tuesday, September 15.

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The committee chairman Nikolai Taktatov recapitulated the figures for his colleagues before the final signatures.

“By the end of the election – by 20.00 of September 13 – the electoral register of the Penza region, in all 1,105 polling stations, included 1,098,316 voters. […] The final protocol has the figures on total voting ballots issued in polling stations, in voting rooms, outside of voting rooms, total ballots voided. If we deduct the voided ballots, the final figure for valid ballots is 676,634 units,” he clarified.

Following that, Nikolai Taktarov read out the vote calculation steps and announced the final results of the election.

“The final results of the vote are: Ivan Alexandrovich Belozertsev [of United Russia] received 588,265 of the total, which is 86.04%; Gennady Leonidovich Yeroshin [of ‘A Just Russia’] received 9,251 votes, 1.35%; Vladimir Anatolyevich Popkov [of ‘Rodina’], 0.97%, or 6,610 votes; Vladimir Anatolyevich Simagin [of CPRF], 52,955 votes, for 7.75%; and Zhigansha Zeiyantullovich Tuktarov [of LDPR], 19,553 votes, or 2.86%,” said the head of the election committee.

He added that a total of 683,698 Penza region citizens, or 62.25% of the total, came to vote.

“They all realize that if they’d refrain [from voting] like it happened in the Arkhangelsk region with [the voter turnout of] 29%, then how’d the head of the Arkhangelsk region feel saying ‘I’m elected by the people?’ It would be an act of misrepresentation, like they say,” Nikolai Taktarov pointed out.

The Penza region citizens “felt the importance of the moment,” he added.

After the speech, the members of the regional election committee signed the final vote and gubernatorial election results protocol.

“Now, dear members of the election committee, by our vote we have deemed the election valid, have deemed Ivan Alexandrovich Belozertsev the elected governor with 86.04% of the vote. We are sending this information to be published, and will be issuing a certificate for the elected governor,” Nikolai Taktarov said.

The elected head of the region will receive the document in the nearest future, he added.

“This happy moment concludes our mission. Thank you all for your work. We will be awaiting for the next event, and the one upcoming is the official inauguration of the elected governor. Then comes the daily labor, and we will be quietly preparing for the State Duma deputy election on September 18 in the upcoming year. The work is already underway,” the Penza region election committee chairman concluded.