According to official reports, the United Russia party has won the Duma elections in Russia. According to election officer Ella Pamfilowa, the party again achieved an absolute majority. The turnout was given as 51.6 percent. When more than 99 percent of the vote was counted, United Russia was 49.8 percent. Thanks to many direct mandates, united Russia achieved a majority of more than 300 of the 450 seats in parliament. 225 seats are allocated through direct mandates. Compared to the Duma election in 2016, however, the Kremlin party has to accept heavy losses. At that time she got 54.20 percent of the vote.
Opposition politicians protested after the announcement by Pamfilova, because in the course of the evening and in the morning hours all trends showed towards a loss of the absolute majority. It was only towards the end of the count that the ratio tipped over, and United Russia was able to secure a qualified majority over the last few meters, with which she can single-handedly bring about constitutional changes.
The communists announced street protests because after the online census they suddenly lost many seats that were believed to be safe in Moscow. However, the city administration categorically refused because of the corona pandemic. The party leader of the communists, Gennady Zyuganov, believes that United Russia, if viewed “objectively”, no longer achieved an absolute majority. He warned once again about electoral fraud. The communists felt that no progress could be expected under the Kremlin party and Putin. The political scientist Tatiana Stanowaja told the dpa that Putin was in danger of transforming the communists from a systemic into an opposition party. If so, they could seriously question Putin’s claim to leadership.
The communists, who benefited from the mood in the country, were able to improve themselves: Many people complain about falling wages and rapidly rising prices. The communists landed at 18.9 percent, after having only reached about 13.35 percent in 2016. The right-wing extremists of the LDPR of the ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky landed at 7.5 percent after massive losses. The Just Russia party came in at 7.5 percent. The new party Nowyje Ljudi (German: New People) was just above the five percent hurdle. With 5.3 percent, it is the fifth party in the previous four-party parliament.
An employee of the opposition politician Alexej Navalny, who was not allowed to vote, wrote on Twitter: “These elections are dirtier than those of 2011 – much dirtier.” The independent election observers of the Golos organization had listed more than 4,000 violations. According to this, forced voting, for example among government employees, was particularly widespread.
Golos also criticized irregularities in the online voting in Moscow. Candidates other than those of the Kremlin Party had initially won after the ballot papers were counted. Then the online data were published with a long delay – and Kremlin candidates were the winners everywhere.
Election supervisor Ella Pamfilowa and the Interior Ministry confirmed individual violations. The election administration also canceled thousands of ballot papers. Pamfilova spoke of an insignificant number of complaints that would have no impact on the vote as a whole.
In Russia and abroad, around 110 million people were called to vote from Friday to Sunday. 14 parties were admitted. (with dpa)