The decision to close the Consulate General of Russia in San Francisco, as well as two consular facilities in new York and Washington was taken by US in response to the decision of the Russian authorities to reduce the number of American diplomats in Russia. In addition to consular services and visa issuance, the Consulate General in San Francisco was a polling station for parliamentary and presidential elections.
In March 2012, on the territory of San Francisco was the polling station N5235, which billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov received 1,437 votes, while current President Vladimir Putin became the second, having received 671 of the voters.
In third place then was the Communist party leader Gennady Zyuganov, with 204 votes.
Experts believe that victory Prokhorov, who appealed to the middle class, brought a young Russian-Americans. There are many lives in Palo Alto- the American science city, located in the famous Silicon valley, which was assigned to the Russian Consulate in San Francisco. In addition, the polling station of the Consulate General were also Sacramento, Los Angeles and Denver.
Then the victory Prokhorov political scientist Alexander Kynev explains that “people voted for who they like”.
“It is clear that the emigration of Brighton beach and emigration, Silicon valley is a different era, culture and views. The old Soviet migration in spirit and was Soviet emigration 1990-2000 completely different”, — says the expert “Газете.Ru”.
However, he notes that the total number of voting of Russians in the United States is still small, and the result obtained there does not affect anything.
However, at the same time, observers believe that now, after Russia will lose the advanced polling station in San Francisco, voters to vote, will have to go to Houston, if Russia will not deploy new additional sites in the city or nearby.
This can create additional difficulties for voters who voted in San Francisco while revenge can take more conservative Russians:
if in 2012 in San Francisco, Putin won 671 vote, at a polling station in new York gave him their votes already 1333 of the voter.
In addition, the same election in new York, the candidate from LDPR Vladimir Zhirinovsky received 105 votes, which is two times more than in the same San Francisco.
However, it should be noted that Prokhorov has bypassed the current President, also in new York and Washington — he actually got twice more votes.
However, despite the victory Prokhorov in new York, it should be noted that at present, many voters of Brighton’s more sympathetic to Putin, says Russian politician Natalia Pelevin, who lived in his time in new York: “They constantly watch Russian TV, and all very for Putin”.
Perhaps, as suggested by Pelevin, Russian authorities will open up additional polling stations while the remaining US consulates in Seattle and Houston. In the 2012 presidential election at polling stations in consulates in Seattle, Houston Prokhorov also bypassed the candidate of Putin.
In the 2011 General elections, which took place in the Consulate General of San Francisco, took first place in the “Yabloko” party, which won 36.6% of the vote — two times more “United Russia”.
Shortly after the election, about 200 people from the local Russians came out to demonstrate for Fair elections.
However, to reduce the degree of opposition the voters of San Francisco helped introduced for the 2016 elections, the system of single-member districts. 8276 polling station on the territory of the Consulate General of San Francisco was assigned to a Zhiguli (161-mu) single-mandate district in Samara region. The Consulate General was also attached polling station 8376 assigned to Hourensou one-mandatory district of Moscow. There is a large margin won the United Russia Yevgeny Serper, and Kobrinska his party colleague Irene White.