Russian President Vladimir Putin is on course for a fifth term in office after three days of nationwide elections, an exit poll suggests. Victory was never in doubt as his major opponents are dead, in prison or exiled.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was slated to win the country’s presidential election,state-run exit polls showed Sunday.
The government-run VTsIOM pollster showed the 71-year-old had won a landslide, having secured an estimated 88% of the vote in the three-day election that included no real opposition candidates.
The exit polls were released following the closure of polling stations in Russia’s westernmost region of Kaliningrad on Sunday evening.
If confirmed, the result would be a record for Putin,who received 76.7% of the vote in the last presidential election in 2018.
The result was a foregone conclusion after the Kremlin outlawed all criticism of Putin or the war and blocked any opposition candidates from running.
As results came in, Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, wrote on X: “The Russian dictator is simulating another election. Everyone in the world understands that this figure … has simply become addicted to power and is doing everything he can to rule forever. … There is no legitimacy in this imitation of elections and there cannot be.”
President of the European Council Charles Michel wrote: “Would like to congratulate Vladimir Putin on his landslide victory in the elections starting today. No opposition. No freedom. No choice.”
David Cameron, UK foreign secretary, said: “The polls have closed in Russia, following the illegal holding of elections on Ukrainian territory, a lack of choice for voters and no independent OSCE monitoring. This is not what free and fair elections look like.”
However, Dmitri Medvedev, the former Russian president, said: “Congratulations to all Russia’s enemies on Vladimir Putin’s brilliant victory in the election of the President of the Russian Federation!”
The “The polls have closed in Russia, following the illegal holding of elections on Ukrainian territory, a lack of choice for voters and no independent OSCE monitoring. This is not what free and fair elections look like.”
However, Dmitri Medvedev, the former Russian president, said: “Congratulations to all Russia’s enemies on Vladimir Putin’s brilliant victory in the election of the President of the Russian Federation!”
The longest-serving ruler since Joseph Stalin, Putin has solidified his grip on power despite western efforts to impose harsh economic sanctions on Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine.
The former KGB spy would become Russia’s longest-serving leader in more than 200 years, overtaking Josef Stalin.
Putin is now poised to extend his nearly quarter century of rule for six more years having presided over a thorough crackdown on dissent,
International observers did not monitor the election across the vast country which reaches across 11 time zones.
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