The pro-Putin United Russia party was last night heading for a sweeping victory in Russian parliamentary elections that opposition parties said were marred by mass violations of election rules and pressure on voters.
Exit polls and preliminary results from Russia's far-eastern regions showed United Russia heading for some 62 per cent of the vote - far ahead of the second-placed Communists on some 11 per cent. Two other parties, the ultra-nationalist Liberal Democrats and left-leaning but also pro-Kremlin Just Russia party, seemed set to pass the 7 per cent threshold to win seats.
Initial results were at the lower end of pre-election opinion polling which put United Russia's support at 62-67 per cent. But after redistribution of votes from parties falling below 7 per cent, it still appeared set for a two-thirds majority of seats in Russia's lower house, or Duma - enough for United Russia to change the constitution at will.
The polls were transformed from a simple parliamentary election into a referendum on the popularity of Vladimir Putin after the Russian president announced in October he would head United Russia's candidate list. The parliamentary poll marks the start of a crucial two-stage transfer of power in Russia, with presidential elections following in exactly three months.
The strong showing by United Russia is expected to provide a platform for Mr Putin to continue to be a significant political figure even if, as expected, he steps down as president as required by the constitution next year. Mr Putin said during the campaign that a solid performance by the pro-Kremlin party would give him a "moral right" to continue to influence events in the country.
Turnout was robust at 60 per cent, four percentage points higher than in the previous elections in 2003. But the Communists immediately said they would challenge the results with Russia's Supreme Court, alleging "systemic" abuses of election rules and strong-arming of voters to vote for United Russia.
"If under [ president Boris] Yeltsin there were two methods to rig the ballot . . . now they have invented at least 15 methods of attracting and deceiving the voters," said Communist party leader Gennady Zyuganov.
Other opposition parties and independent observers had already said the polls had seen unprecedented rule-breaking.
Golos, a Russian coalition of observers, cited violations including pressure on students and state workers. Former chess champion Garry Kasparov, who is now a leader of the Other Russia opposition coalition, called the poll a "rape of democracy".
The poll had been marked by accusations from Mr Putin that opposition parties backed by foreign countries were attempting to meddle in the polls.
Opposition groups reported that police had arrested dozens of their activists.
Dmitry Krayukhin, a human rights activist and independent election monitor from the town of Oryol, said police arrested him on Saturday. "I was walking down the street when a young man pushed into me and started yelling," he said. "I immediately realised it was a provocation. Suddenly two or three militia guys came out from a car . . . I was then taken down the station and charged with stealing a mobile phone."
The police released him only when Amnesty International and other human rights group intervened, Mr Krayukhin said.
Opposition leaders also questioned the size of the turnout and said the huge voting figures were the result of fraud. Vladimir Ryzhkov, an independent MP, said absentee ballots from his Siberian constituency had shot up from 1,500 in 2003 to 20,000.