Alexei Navalny stands posthumously against the Russian president… Thousands of people turned out at polling stations across Russia on Sunday to take part in what the anti-Kremlin opposition said was a peaceful, symbolic political protest against the re-election of President Vladimir Putin.

In an action called “Noon Against Putin”, Russians opposed to the veteran Kremlin leader went to their local polling stations at midday either to cast invalid ballots in protest or to vote for one of three other candidates against Putin, who is widely expected to win by a landslide .

Others said they would write the name of the opposition leader, who died last month in a prison in the Russian Arctic Circle.on their ballot.

Navalny associates posted videos on YouTube showing people queuing to vote at polling stations across Russia at midday who said they were there to protest peacefully.

Navalny had endorsed the plan for “Noon Against Putin” in a social media message shared by his lawyers before his death. The independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta called the planned action “political testament of Navalny”.

“Hope is very little but if you can do something (like this), do it. There is nothing left of democracy,” said a young woman at a polling station who did not give her name and whose face was blurred from Navalny’s team.

Another young woman at another polling station, whose identity was similarly concealed, said she had votedwith the “less controversial” of the three candidates pitted against Putin. A student who voted in Moscow told Navalny’s channel that people like him who disagree with the current system should still get on with their lives.

“History has shown that changes happen at the most unexpected time,” he said.

Despite the presence of these protesters — who represent a tiny fraction of Russia’s 114 million voters — Putin is expected to consolidate his power in an election that is sure to give him a landslide victory.

The Kremlin characterizes Navalny’s political allies – most of whom are based outside Russia – dangerous extremists which are intended to destabilize the country on behalf of the West. He argues that Putin enjoys overwhelming support among Russians, with polls showing his approval rating at over 80%.

With Russia extending in 11 different time zones, the protesting voters are rather scattered rather than forming a unified mass, making it difficult to estimate how many people showed up for the protest event.

The size of the queue at each polling station as seen on Navalny’s channel varies from a few dozen people to what appears to be several hundred people.

Reuters reporters saw a slight increase in the flow of voters, particularly younger people, at midday at some polling stations in Moscow and Yekaterinburg, with queues of several hundred people. Some said they were protesting even though there were no outward signs to distinguish them from ordinary voters.

Navalny’s exiled supporters have released footage of protests in Russia and abroad on YouTube.

“We showed ourselves, all over Russia and all over the world that Putin is not Russia, that Putin has seized power in Russia,” said Ruslan Savedinov of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation. “Our victory is that we, the people, defeated fear, defeated isolation — many people saw that it was not alone”.

Leonid Volkov, an exiled associate of Navalny who was attacked with a hammer last week in Vilnius, estimated that hundreds of thousands of people went to polling stations in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and other cities.

Reuters cannot independently verify this estimate.

At polling stations in Russian diplomatic missions from Australia and Japan to Armenia, Kazakhstan and Georgia, hundreds of Russians lined up to vote at noon.

In Berlin, Julia, Navalny’s widow appeared at the Russian embassy in order to take part in the protest event there along with Kira Jarmis, Navalny’s representative. Other Russians present clapped and chanted her name rhythmically.