Putin's Landslide Victory: Securing Fifth Term And Surpassing Stalin As Longest-Serving Leader

In Russia's election on Sunday, a record post-Soviet landslide victory was achieved by President Vladimir Putin, solidifying his already firm grip on power.

The outcome signifies that Putin, aged 71, is positioned to commence a new six-year term, surpassing Josef Stalin to become Russia's longest-serving leader in over 200 years if he completes it, as reported by India Today citing Reuters.

Photo Credit: PTI

Putin Secures Fifth Term With Landslide Victory

An exit poll conducted by pollster the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM) indicated that Putin secured 87.8% of the vote, marking the highest result in Russia's post-Soviet history. Communist candidate Nikolai Kharitonov emerged second with just under 4%, followed by newcomer Vladislav Davankov in third place and ultra-nationalist Leonid Slutsky in fourth, as suggested by partial results, as reported by Reuters.

During a victory speech in Moscow, Putin addressed supporters, emphasizing his commitment to addressing tasks related to what he referred to as Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine and reinforcing the Russian military. The election coincided with attacks within Russia by Ukrainian missiles and drones, resulting in several casualties.

Inspired by the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic prison the previous month, thousands of opponents staged protests against Putin at polling stations both within Russia and abroad at noon.

In remarks to reporters, Putin characterized Russia's election as democratic and dismissed the impact of the Navalny-inspired protests on the election's outcome. Responding to a question from NBC, a US TV network, regarding the democratic nature of his re-election, Putin criticized the political and judicial systems in the United States, describing them as a "disaster" rather than a democracy, as reported by Reuters.

Voting occurred over three days across Russia's 11 time zones, including in illegally annexed regions of Ukraine and online. Although polling concluded Sunday night in Russia, voting continued at certain embassies globally.

Despite stringent controls, reports of several dozen cases of vandalism at polling stations surfaced during the voting period. Incidents included attempts to ignite fires or set off explosives, as well as instances of throwing green antiseptic or ink into ballot boxes, resulting in several arrests, including in Moscow and St Petersburg. The OVD-Info group, which monitors political arrests, reported that 80 individuals were arrested in 20 cities across Russia on Sunday.