THE RULING United Russia party swept to victory in regional elections held on Sunday, but the results were marred by charges of vote-rigging.
According to preliminary totals, the party received an average of 60 per cent of votes across six provinces where legislatures were being elected, though votes were still being counted in thousands of mayoral and local elections across Russia.
United Russia’s preliminary results were up slightly from the last round of regional elections, held in March, which were judged to be comparatively clean by observers. The party then got about 50 per cent.
On Sunday, however, opposition leaders claimed that United Russia – headed by Vladimir Putin, the prime minister, and known informally as the “party of bureaucrats” for its ties to the establishment – had employed dirty tactics.
Yesterday the head of the central election committee in Chuvashia province resigned, saying she was put under political pressure during the election.
“In 15 years of working in this election system I have always been certain that in Chuvashia the election commission system does not fall under someone’s influence . . . These last elections have made me doubt this,” Lyudmila Linik told the press. – (Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2010)