Maria and her husband, Aleksandr, are sure that President Vladimir V. Putin will safe a fifth time period as Russia’s chief within the presidential election this weekend.

However the couple, who dwell in Moscow with their three youngsters, usually are not so certain about what is going to observe. Foremost of their minds are fears that Mr. Putin, emboldened by successful a brand new six-year time period, would possibly declare one other mobilization for troopers to combat in Ukraine. Aleksandr, 38, who left Russia shortly after Mr. Putin introduced the primary mobilization in September 2022 however not too long ago returned, is even contemplating leaving the nation once more, his spouse stated.

“I solely hear about mobilization — that there’s a deliberate offensive for the summer time and that troops want rotation,” Maria, 34, stated in a WhatsApp change. She declined to permit the couple’s household identify for use, fearing repercussions from the federal government.

Many Russians have been worrying a couple of multitude of points earlier than the vote, which began on Friday and takes place over three days. Although the Russian authorities have denied that one other mobilization for the battle is deliberate, a way of unease persists.

The considerations look like grounded within the chance that Mr. Putin will use his unfettered energy to make modifications he averted earlier than the vote. Denis Volkov, the director of the Levada Middle, one of many few unbiased pollsters in Russia, stated these anxieties had been nonetheless felt primarily by the minority of Russians who oppose the federal government.

Whereas a possible mobilization stays the most important reason for concern, there may be unease, too, over funds and the economic system. Some Russians fear that the ruble, which has been propped up by the federal government after plunging final 12 months, may be allowed to depreciate once more, elevating the price of imports. Businesspeople fear about increased taxes, and opposition activists anticipate extra crackdowns on dissent.

“Individuals are very anxious,” stated Nina L. Khrushcheva, a professor of worldwide affairs on the New Faculty in New York Metropolis who usually visits Russia. “Uncertainty is the worst, as a lot as Russian individuals are used to uncertainty.”

The troubles replicate a present temper in Russia, the place many have discovered to hope for the most effective however anticipate the worst. The uncertainty has been worsened by a authorities that consultants say has grow to be more and more authoritarian.

After greater than twenty years in energy, Mr. Putin is just not restrained by an opposition occasion in Parliament or a powerful civil society. He’s due to this fact comparatively free to behave as he pleases.

Some consultants say that the Kremlin might use the outcomes of the vote — anticipated to be a landslide victory for Mr. Putin — to crack down even additional on dissent and escalate the battle in Ukraine, which was meant to be a brisk “particular army operation” however has changed into a slog that has triggered a whole lot of 1000’s of casualties.

“In an authoritarian election, the outcomes are predictable however the penalties usually are not,” Yekaterina Schulmann, a Russian political scientist, stated in a response to written questions from The New York Occasions. “If the system decides that it did properly and all the pieces is sweet, then the post-election interval could be the time to make unpopular choices.”

Ms. Schulmann pointed for instance to Mr. Putin’s final re-election, in 2018, which was adopted by a extremely unpopular improve in Russia’s retirement age.

Elections in Russia are managed tightly by the Kremlin by its nearly complete management of the media and state enterprises, whose employees are sometimes pressured to vote. The electoral machine filters out undesirable candidates, and opposition activists have both been compelled to flee or have ended up in Russian prisons. The nation’s most distinguished dissident, Aleksei A. Navalny, died final month in a penal colony within the Arctic the place he had been imprisoned.

Whereas the end result of the vote is just not in query, Russians have nonetheless been preoccupied by the method. The vote would be the first since Mr. Putin’s choice to invade Ukraine in February 2022.

A Moscow advisor who works with Russian companies stated a few of his purchasers had intentionally scheduled new inventory choices on the Moscow change in order that they might occur in what they anticipated to be a comparatively quiet interval earlier than the vote. He requested anonymity to keep away from jeopardizing his relationship along with his purchasers.

Russian customers additionally rushed to purchase automobiles originally of the 12 months, after auto-market analysts suggested that the interval earlier than the elections may be the most effective time to purchase as a result of the ruble may be devalued as soon as the vote was over. The variety of new automobiles offered in Russia in January and February jumped greater than 80 % in contrast with the identical interval final 12 months, according to Avtostat, a information web site in regards to the Russian auto trade.

Companies have been frightened that the federal government will increase taxes after the vote. On Wednesday, Mr. Putin stated that the federal government would draft new tax guidelines for people and personal entities, and consultants stated that most definitely meant taxes would rise for each teams.

Yevgeny Nadorshin, the chief economist on the PF Capital consulting firm in Moscow, stated corporations had been notably involved a couple of rise in taxes and better labor prices. “That may jeopardize Russia’s competitiveness,” he stated.

Mr. Nadorshin additionally famous the widespread rumors of one other troop mobilization that, if it occurred, might additional limit the labor marketplace for companies, he stated.

Mr. Volkov, of the Levada Middle, stated that the majority Russians, after the preliminary shock of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the mobilization that adopted seven months later, tailored to the brand new world. A lot of that was the results of authorities efforts to lift morale by ensuring the nation’s economic system stayed wholesome and injecting cash into its industrial sector.

“There was a severe redistribution of assets in favor of the bulk, who really feel that they’ll now dwell a traditional life with out getting instantly engaged within the battle,” he stated, referring to wage will increase for manufacturing facility employees and varied social payouts.

Nonetheless, he pointed to what he stated was rising polarization between supporters and opponents of Mr. Putin.

“Mutual misunderstanding immediately is larger and extra acute than earlier than,” Mr. Volkov stated.

Many Russian anti-Kremlin activists — those that stay within the nation and people who left — worry a brand new crackdown on dissent.

Yevgeny Chichvarkin, a Russian businessman and opposition activist in London, stated he believed that after the election, dissidents would face a stark selection between fleeing or going through imprisonment.

“Nothing will assist; the selection shall be both to go to jail or depart the nation,” he stated in an interview with Zhivoy Gvozd, an unbiased Russian information outlet.

However some analysts have expressed doubt that Mr. Putin will do way more than he already has to stamp out dissent.

“The system can’t be within the state of mobilization and stress eternally,” said Aleksandr Kynev, a Russia-based political scientist who makes a speciality of regional politics. “If you happen to give an excessive amount of energy to the safety providers, tomorrow they’ll take away you from energy,” he stated. “Vladimir Putin understands it properly.”

Alina Lobzina contributed reporting.