Russia launches referendums in four occupied regions of Ukraine

A Kremlin-orchestrated referendum was underway Friday in occupied regions of Ukraine that sought to make them part of Russia, with some officials carrying ballots to apartment blocks accompanied by gun-toting police. (AP Photo)

Ukraine and the West said the vote was an illegitimate attempt by Moscow to slice away a large part of the country, stretching from the Russian border to the Crimean Peninsula. (AP Photo)

The referendums in the Luhansk, Kherson and partly Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions were widely seen as a prelude to Moscow annexing the regions. (AP Photo)

A volunteer of Luhansk regional election commission, right, distributes ribbons in colours of Russian national flag and posters reading "Russia is the future, participate in the referendum!" to local citizens. (AP Photo)

The voting, which was overseen by authorities installed by Russia, is scheduled to run through Tuesday and is almost certain to go the Kremlin’s way. (AP Photo)

Leonid Pasechnik, the leader of self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic, speaks to the media as he opens voting in a referendum in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine. (AP Photo)

Authorities in the Kherson region said residents of a small Moscow-controlled area of the neighbouring Mykolaiv province also will be able to vote, and that small area was “incorporated” into Kherson until all of Mykolaiv is taken over by Russian forces. (AP Photo)

Luhansk Gov. Serhii Haidai accused officials of taking down the names of people who voted against joining Russia. In Pic: An elderly woman from Luhansk region, the territory controlled by a pro-Russia separatist government, but who lives in Russia, holds her Ukrainian passport as she prepares to vote at temporary accommodation facility in Volgograd, Russia. (AP Photo)

In online posts, Haidai also alleged that Russian officials threatened to kick down the doors of anyone who didn’t want to vote. (Reuters Photo)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Ukrainians in occupied regions to undermine the referendums and to share information about the people conducting “this farce.” (AP Photo)