This parody of an election will be remembered for the cynically methodical manner in which he and his cronies stole the people’s right to freely choose Russia’s leader.

Putin is not a fit person to lead Russia. He portrays himself as a man of the common people yet wholly lacks common decency, integrity and honour. He should be standing in the dock of the international criminal court in The Hague, where he faces war crimes charges over the abduction of Ukrainian children, not standing for re-election as president for another six years.

Putin’s victory in the election, which concludes this weekend, is a foregone conclusion. He faces no credible rival. The Kremlin has spent an estimated $1.2bn (£1bn) on “information management” (meaning lies and propaganda), vote-fixing in occupied Ukraine, and unopposed nationwide campaigning. Lavish state funding, including a reported 20-fold increase in spending on internet projects, platforms and media, has a single aim: a Putin landslide.