Copyright 2018 NPR. To see more, visit MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST: And I'm Mary Louise Kelly in Moscow, where the polls are set to open at 8 sharp Sunday morning. Russia is holding a presidential election or coronation, as some here call it. Vladimir Putin is running for president again. Here's the challenge for the Putin campaign. Even Putin seems a little bored by it. His final campaign speech this week lasted a whopping two minutes. He never actually mentioned the election. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Speaking Russian). (CHEERING) PUTIN: (Speaking Russian). KELLY: Cheers there from a crowd in Sevastopol in Crimea, home to Russia's Black Sea Fleet. This morning, the Kremlin followed up with a new video. In it, Putin makes a direct appeal to Russians. Please come out to vote. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PUTIN: (Speaking Russian). KELLY: The good news for Putin is that the seven candidates challenging him for the presidency are all polling in single
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