Russian elections to test Putin’s stronghold on the nation

Up to 110 million Russians were eligible to cast their vote on Sunday in a parliamentary vote which could give a clear signal of the people’s political sentiment ahead of next year’s Presidential elections.

Out-going Prime Minister and former President Vladimir Putin is set to contest the forthcoming Presidential elections to be held on 4 March 2012.

Putin, 59, is the leader of Russia’s largest political party, United Russia, which holds a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

Putin remains the most popular Russian politician, however there were signs that his popularity might be declining.

A good result for his party in the elections could reinvigorate Putin’s campaign and catapult him towards another electoral victory in the Presidential elections.

Russians recently started to doubt Putin’s strongman image amid widespread allegations of corruption among government officials, growing social and economic unrest and an ever-growing gap between the rich and poor in the vast Eurasian nation.

Opposition parties claim that they have been denied the opportunity to contest elections whilst other parties, which have been allowed to participate in the vote, claimed that they were hindered in their attempts to carry out electoral campaigns.

Only seven parties have been allowed to put candidates forward for elections for the lower-house parliament.

Recent opinion polls indicate that the ruling party, United Russia, might suffer some losses and lose its overwhelming majority, depriving it from the numbers needed to push through constitutional and economic reforms.