Russia recently held their presidential election, with incumbent Vladimir Putin winning in a landslide. Though the election may be touted as "fair" and a "democratic process", is it truly an election at all? Or is it a sham put on mainly for show, with the winner chosen ahead of time? Did any of his competitors have a real chance?

Ever since Putin has come into power, dozens of dissenters, such as journalists and human rights activists, have been killed, with mysterious circumstances surrounding their deaths. Censorship in the country is rampant, with the government controlling most television shows and numerous previously independent organizations being forced to close after being labelled foreign agents. If the television is the source of the majority of political propaganda, and is under the control of Putin and the government, that hardly bodes well for democracy.

Without dissent and without diversity of opinion, the Russian government is not a democracy by the people and for the people. It's a carefully crafted ruse, a shell of actual freedom. After all, how can a democratic process thrive without dissent and with the government acting as a tyrannical puppet-master?

Flash-forward to the present: election year. One of the only viable candidates in the Russian presidential race, and one of the only candidates with a legitimate chance of winning and citizen support, is shoved out of the race on account of a criminal conviction. The Russian government bars those with criminal convictions from running for office, a fact which has served as suspiciously favorable to Putin.

The man in question, Alexei Nevalny (a critic of Putin's corruption), on account of fraud charges that have been viewed more so as a political game than legitimate grounds for disqualification, was out. Putin's remaining challengers were on the fringe candidates, with abysmal poll numbers. His reign was all but certain to continue.

Even on the day of, the election was shrouded with corruption. Photographic evidence shows many, perhaps government employees, voting in multiple polling locations.

Democracy thrives on liberty, freedom of speech and expression, and dissent. With suppression of such basic values, in what way can this election be considered democratic? Was his victory actually a victory, or more so an orchestrated game?

Democracy suffers in the dark. It dies under strangulation.