In Tyumen, on the eve of the elections, police recommended that pharmacies not sell iodine, brilliant green, and other staining antiseptics in large quantities. According to pharmacists, this referred to September 18–20, and in some cases to sales of five or more units.
According to 72.ru, police came to one of Tyumen's pharmacies and asked them not to sell iodine, brilliant green, and other staining products from September 18 to 20. One pharmacist said that colleagues in some pharmacies were separately told not to sell such products in quantities of five or more.
Other pharmacy workers confirmed that they had received such recommendations, but emphasized that there are no formal restrictions on the sale of iodine and brilliant green during the voting period. The publication's sources linked the police request to the risk of provocations, which, they said, had already occurred in previous elections.
The publication writes that buyers who will purchase large amounts of staining antiseptics are to be monitored. In the 2024 presidential election, brilliant green, iodine, and ink were poured into ballot boxes across Russia.
It was reported that, because of such actions, ballots were mostly spoiled under the influence of phone scammers. Moscow resident Alina Nevmyanova, who poured brilliant green into a ballot box, received a one-year sentence in a penal colony-settlement; she said that she was called by a “police lieutenant”, a “Central Bank employee”, and an “FSB employee”.
Across Russia, elections of various levels, including to the State Duma, will be held on September 18–20.
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