Putin’s party dominates Russian election, but votes on the fringes show all is not well with regime

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s party dominated the weekend elections for the State Duma, with results that did not surprise observers familiar with the country’s tightly controlled election system, but outcomes on the fringes show Moscow might be losing its grip.

United Russia, the country’s governing party, claimed a continued mandate to power on Monday, with 57.83% of the vote. That result includes a near sweep of single-member districts, giving it an even stronger advantage, with the expectation of occupying 355 of the Duma’s 450 seats — smashing its previous 2016 record of 343 seats.