DONETSK, November 2 (RIA Novosti) — Donetsk residents are queuing for hours in order to cast their votes in the ongoing elections of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Sunday.
"We are ready to queue for two-three hours in order to vote," a Donetsk resident named Sergei told RIA Novosti. "The most important thing for us is to take part in the elections [to vote]," he added.
"People are going to vote with great enthusiasm, the situation is calm," a Bulgarian parliamentary deputy from the Ataka political party told RIA Novosti Sunday. "We have not seen any violations, though the election day is not over yet," Tadasheva added.
Voters are going to the polls to elect the heads of local government and legislatures. The polls are monitored by dozens of international observers from the Czech Republic, Greece, Slovakia, Serbia, Abkhazia, France, Germany, Israel and Russia.
Three candidates are running for presidency in the Donetsk election: the acting prime minister, Alexander Zakharchenko, security official Yuri Sivokonenko and parliamentary deputy speaker Alexander Kofman. Parties to vie for legislative seats are called the Donetsk Republic and Free Donbas.
Kiev and several western countries said they will not recognize the results of this "illegal" vote. Russia said earlier it is going to recognize the results of the polls since they would help to give legitimacy to the power in the region, but the United States, the European Union and the United Nations have condemned the elections.
