Russian President Vladimir Putin's party wins two-thirds of the seats in parliamentary elections, extending his hold over the country
Russia’s ruling party has retained its supermajority in parliament, further cementing President Vladimir Putin’s grip on power in elections that most opposition politicians were barred from and that were marred by multiple reports of violations.
It's not yet clear whether Putin will run again, choose a successor or outline a different path — but he is expected to keep his hand on the tiller whatever he decides, and an obedient State Duma, or parliament, will be crucial to those plans.Results from nearly 99 percent of the country’s polling stations gave the ruling United Russia party 49.8 percent of the vote for the 225 seats apportioned by parties, according to the Central Election Commission.
Chair of the Central Election Commission Ella Pamfilova confirmed at a briefing that United Russia has retained the so-called constitutional majority in the parliament, or two-thirds of the 450 seats required for a party to be allowed to make changes to the country's constitution.But concerns that the results had been manipulated mounted, with many decrying that a breakdown of the online voting in Moscow was still not available to the public.
Other prominent opposition politicians faced prosecution or were forced to leave the country under pressure from the authorities.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Early limited results in Russia show pro-Kremlin party leadsMOSCOW (AP) — Early results Sunday in Russia's parliamentary election showed the dominant pro-Kremlin party well in the lead, but it was unclear if the party will retain the two-thirds majority of seats that allow it to change the constitution.
Read more »
Vladimir Putin's opponents are bowed but not broken as Russia votesLiberal party Yabloko and the movement of Alexei Navalny hope that the opposition can make inroads on United Russia in the Duma parliamentary election.
Read more »
Opinion | Durham's Russia investigation ends not with a bang — but with a whimperThe Mueller Report spells out all the ways in which the Russia investigation was not a hoax. The only hoax is the charge contained in this indictment.
Read more »
Russia’s Ruling Party Leading in Elections as Putin Looks to Tighten GripRussia’s ruling party is leading parliamentary elections, early results showed, setting it on course to cement President Vladimir Putin’s control over his country’s main levers of power
Read more »
Russians Vote as Putin Looks to Tighten GripRussia’s parliamentary elections will show if the country’s beleaguered opposition can challenge the dominance of a leader who is expected to remain in power for many years to come.
Read more »
Pro-Kremlin party leads Russia's parliamentary vote – exit pollsThe election, marred by numerous reports of violations, lacked significant opposition presence after authorities declared organisations linked to imprisoned Alexey Navalny, the Kremlin’s most prominent foe, to be extremist.
Read more »