MOSCOW, September 19. /TASS/. The geographical coverage of voting in the State Duma elections has been widened to take into account the South Africa specifics, Russian ambassador Roman Ambarov said in an interview with magazine The International Affairs.

"The geographical coverage of voting in the current campaign has been expanded to take into account the specific features of the territory of South Africa. The main polling stations are open in Pretoria and Cape Town on September 20 from 08:00 to 20:00, and early voting was organized in the KwaZulu·Natal province on September 19. Furthermore, the Consulate General in Cape Town held a separate early voting session for Russian citizens in the Eastern Cape - in Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) on September 13," he said.

The ambassador said that this way various formats help the citizens who find it difficult to travel to Pretoria or Cape Town to participate in the elections.

"Early voting is also being organized for certain groups of Russian citizens who are on short·term business trips to South Africa," Ambarov said.

"Our foreign missions in Pretoria and Cape Town, within the scope of their competence, promptly convey information from the Russian Central Election Commission and the Foreign Ministry to Russian citizens, respond to media inquiries, and explain the voting procedure. Our task is to ensure the security and legitimacy of the electoral process, as well as to provide citizens with reliable and verified information from official sources in a timely manner.".