Putin’s United Russia Wins Record 355 Seats in Russian Parliament
Ruling party secures constitutional majority in first parliamentary election since Russia launched its full-scale military operations of Ukraine
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party is set to secure a record 355 seats in the 450-member State Duma, according to preliminary results announced Monday by the Central Election Commission after more than 95 percent of votes had been counted.
The result would give United Russia a constitutional majority larger than its previous record of 343 seats in 2016. The party received 57.83 percent of the party-list vote, compared with 49.8 percent in the 2021 parliamentary election.
The three-day election, held from Sept. 18 to 20, was the first parliamentary vote in Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale military operations of Ukraine in February 2022.
The Communist Party finished second in the party-list vote, followed by the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) and New People. Preliminary seat projections put the Communists at 40 seats, the LDPR at 25, and New People at 20.
Central Election Commission Chair Ella Pamfilova said voter turnout exceeded 59 percent and thanked Russians for participating despite what she described as “psychological pressure” on the country.
United Russia has dominated Russian politics since the early 2000s, while Putin has remained the country’s central political figure since becoming acting president on Dec. 31, 1999.
Voting also took place in Ukrainian territories that Russia claims to have annexed, a move condemned by Kyiv as illegal.
Pamfilova said final results would be announced later this week.
The parliamentary election also took place amid renewed fighting between Russia and Ukraine. On Sunday, Russian officials said a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack targeted Moscow and the surrounding region, killing at least two people and damaging a facility at the Moscow Oil Refinery.
Russia’s Defense Ministry vowed to intensify strikes on Kyiv in response, accusing Ukraine of targeting civilians and attempting to disrupt the election.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin described the assault as the largest drone attack on the capital since Russia launched its full-scale military operations of Ukraine in 2022, while Russian authorities said air defenses had intercepted more than 1,600 Ukrainian drones since Saturday, including around 450 heading toward Moscow.