Putin’s United Russia Leads Election With 57.5% Vote

By Thetripurapost Web Desk, Moscow
Sep 21, 2026
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Ruling United Russia party is heading towards another strong performance in the country’s parliamentary election, with preliminary results putting it at 57.5% of the vote after more than 71% of ballots had been counted. The final official results are expected later.

The 2026 election is particularly significant because it is the first Russian parliamentary election since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. President Vladimir Putin had presented the vote as an opportunity for Russians to demonstrate support for the country’s armed forces and its wartime policies.

The election concluded amid a major escalation in the conflict, with Ukraine launching a large-scale drone attack against Moscow and surrounding areas on the final day of voting.

United Russia Maintains Dominant Position

United Russia had already established a commanding presence in the State Duma following the 2021 parliamentary election, when it secured 324 of the chamber’s 450 seats.

The State Duma is the lower house of Russia’s federal parliament. Half of its 450 members are elected through the nationwide party-list system, while the other 225 seats are contested in single-member constituencies.

Preliminary figures from the current election show United Russia far ahead of the other parties. The Communist Party was around 14%, while the LDPR was reported at approximately 8.7% after more than 71% of ballots had been counted.

Anti-War Yabloko Excluded From National Contest

The election was held in an environment where parties and candidates opposing Russia’s war in Ukraine faced significant restrictions.

The liberal Yabloko party was removed from the federal ballot before the election, meaning it could not contest the nationwide vote under its own party list. Some individual opposition figures were nevertheless able to seek constituency seats.

The exclusion of anti-war forces has become a major issue in assessments of the election. Opposition figures and critics have also raised concerns about restrictions on candidates, observers and campaigning.

Putin Connects Election With Support for Troops

Ahead of polling, President Vladimir Putin encouraged Russians to participate and portrayed the election as a demonstration of support for soldiers serving in Ukraine.

The Kremlin has sought to present the parliamentary vote as an indication of domestic backing for its policies during the continuing war.

At the same time, independent critics and opposition figures have disputed the extent to which the election can be regarded as a genuine measure of public sentiment, citing restrictions on political competition and opposition participation.

Putin Is Not a Member of United Russia

Despite his close political association with United Russia, Vladimir Putin has never formally been a member of the party.

He served as United Russia’s chairman from 2008 to 2012, despite not holding formal party membership. The party’s rules allow its chairman to serve without necessarily being a registered member.

Putin left the chairmanship in 2012, after which former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev assumed the position.

Putin has not publicly given a definitive explanation for why he never formally joined United Russia, so assigning a specific political motive to that decision would go beyond the available evidence.

Ukraine Launches Major Drone Assault on Moscow

The final day of Russia’s parliamentary election was overshadowed by a large Ukrainian drone offensive targeting Moscow and surrounding areas.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air defences had dealt with more than 1,600 drones, including around 450 that were heading towards the capital. Russian officials described the assault as the largest drone attack on Moscow since the beginning of the war.

The attacks caused deaths in the wider Moscow region and damaged infrastructure, including the Moscow oil refinery. Images from the capital showed thick smoke rising from the refinery area following the strikes.

A residential building in the Moscow region was also hit, with the incident causing significant damage and prompting the evacuation of hundreds of residents.

Moscow Attack Overshadows Russia’s Election

The simultaneous occurrence of the drone strikes and Russia’s parliamentary vote added another layer of tension to an election already taking place against the backdrop of the Ukraine war.

Russian authorities accused Ukraine of attempting to disrupt the voting process, while Ukrainian officials said their long-range strikes targeted strategically important Russian infrastructure.

With United Russia leading the preliminary count, the election is expected to preserve the party’s dominant position in the 450-member State Duma.

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