Putin wins Russian presidential election with 76% of the vote
Vladimir Putin won a fourth term as Russian president with over 76 percent of the vote. There have been various reports of electoral irregularities during the vote.
According to a report by the Russian Central Election Commission on March 18, with 99% of the votes counted, Vladimir Putin will lead the Kremlin for another six years, with 76.6% of the votes.
Initial results and post-election polls indicated Putin's victory with at least 73 percent of the vote.
Of the seven other candidates competing with the incumbent Russian president, Pavel Grudinin of the Communist Party won nearly 12 percent of the vote, and nationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky won six percent. Journalist and TV presenter Ksenia Sobchak won 1.6 percent, and the remaining centrist, liberal and communist candidates each won less than one percent.
Mr Putin appeared briefly with supporters outside the Kremlin to thank voters, saying his re-election showed the "hope and confidence" of the Russian people.
He told reporters shortly afterwards that he had no plans to attempt to change the Russian constitution at this time and also indicated that he did not intend to run in the 2030 elections.
Putin's fourth presidential term ends in 2024, and he cannot run again without changing the current constitution, but he could do so in 2030, after another term. Putin, 65, will be 71 at the end of his current term.
A Gallup poll in late 2017 found that 80 percent of Russians were satisfied with Putin's leadership, although only 40 percent said they found the Russian election process trustworthy.
The only prominent political figure who was said to have been able to unite the opposition to Putin and compete more closely with the incumbent president is Alexei Navalny, who was barred from running in the election. Navalny had planned to run for president but was barred from running due to what he called “fabrication.” He had called on citizens to boycott Sunday’s election and not vote.
The Russian Central Election Committee has opposed the presence of Navalny's representatives, as well as observers from the non-governmental organization "Glos", at the polling stations.
However, NGOs and a number of observers have reported violations at various polling stations. The NGO Gloss says it has received more than 2,800 reports of election violations. Reported violations include the moving of ballot boxes to locations inaccessible to cameras, or the blocking of observers from working in polling stations.
There have also been reports of fraudulent ballots being cast, particularly in Moscow and St. Petersburg, where Putin is less popular. Some voters have also said they were pressured into voting by their employers or teachers.
Russian election commission officials have said they are investigating some reports of irregularities.
The Russian Election Commission says more than 67 percent of voters took part in the election, with some regions reporting higher turnout than in 2012.
Source: Radio Farda
