Russia’s dominant United Russia party has emerged victorious in a parliamentary election that President Vladimir Putin positioned as a barometer for backing the war in Ukraine, according to the Central Election Commission’s announcement on Monday. With over 95 percent of votes tallied, the United Russia party secured 57.83 percent of the vote, marking a notable increase from the 49.8 percent it garnered in the prior 2021 election for the State Duma.
The Communist Party, the LDPR ultra-nationalist party, the New People party, and the Just Russia party, which typically align with United Russia on key matters, lagged significantly behind. The outcome is expected to grant United Russia 355 seats in the 450-seat Duma, ensuring the retention of its constitutional majority, as confirmed by the commission.
Aside from United Russia, three other parties succeeded in entering parliament: the Communists with 13.81 percent, the LDPR with 8.98 percent, and the New People party with 7.96 percent. Just Russia narrowly missed the five percent threshold required for parliamentary entry but remains optimistic about its chances, according to Ella Pamfilova.
The voter turnout was recorded at 59.3 percent, marking a record high for such elections. Notably, Russia did not invite observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe to oversee the electoral process.
In a separate development, Ukraine, under martial law, dismissed the Russian election as a “pseudo election,” citing the exclusion of most anti-war candidates from the ballot. Notably, individuals from the liberal Yabloko party who contested the election expressed concerns about their freedom following the imprisonment of two senior party members for remarks related to the conflict.
Despite facing obstacles, Yabloko’s leader, Nikolai Rybakov, symbolically spoiled his ballot paper with the party’s name and the slogan “For peace.” While Yabloko failed to secure national-level seats, it appeared poised to enter the regional parliament in Novgorod.
On a different note, Ramzan Kadyrov, a close Putin ally, secured a fifth term as the leader of Chechnya with 99.85 percent of the vote. Kadyrov, who wields substantial influence in Chechnya, has often faced criticism from international observers regarding the conduct of elections in the region.
Kadyrov, known for his staunch loyalty to Putin and firm stance on Ukraine, has been accused by human rights groups of various rights infringements, which he denies vehemently.
