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Russian Roulette (Dispatch 82)

VICE News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky spent Election Day in Ukraine visiting candidates, polling stations, and an electoral commission.

On October 26, parliamentary elections were held in much of Ukraine — including long-embattled areas in the east. Wary of interference from separatists, armed guards manned polling stations and escorted completed ballots to ensure their safety. Turnout in the region was low, however, as residents appeared reluctant to vote. And in the rebel-held Donetsk People's Republic, elections weren't held at all — on November 2, pro-Russia separatists there will hold their own elections in hopes of legitimizing their self-proclaimed republic.

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VICE News correspondent Simon Ostrovsky spent Election Day visiting candidates, polling stations, and an electoral commission to find out how the political process was progressing amid the heightened levels of tension.

Follow @simonostrovsky on Twitter here

Follow @Henry_Langston on Twitter here

Check out "Crimea: A Look Inside the New Russian Territory"

Check out "The Donetsk People's Republic"

Check out all of VICE News' coverage of the conflict in Ukraine here

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