Putin’s party secures record score in Russia election

FIFTH YEAR OF WAR

The election result is expected to further tighten Putin’s grip on power.

Some fear a new military mobilisation in Russia. Putin has denied this is in the works, while Kyiv accuses Moscow of planning a callup in coming weeks.

Russia’s Communist party came second in the vote, winning 40 seats. The nationalist LDPR party took 25 seats and the New People party won 20.

The election took place amid the escalation of the Ukraine war in recent months, with no diplomatic solution in sight.

For the Kremlin, it served as a barometer on the mood of Russians towards the war.

In some regions, voting also took place for the heads of regions.

In Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov – known for ruling the Muslim-majority republic with an iron fist – won 99.85 per cent of the vote, the electoral commission said.

Opposing Kadyrov is hugely dangerous in Chechnya, which is known for extra-judicial killings.

Putin’s political opponents are in exile, prison or dead – such as his main opponents Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison in 2024.

The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas dismissed Russia’s “so-called” election.

“The Kremlin silenced dissent, barred the only registered party that opposed its war in Ukraine, and shut out international election monitors. The veneer of democracy is all that remains in Russia,” Kallas said.