Navalny allies claim symbolic win in Russian regional vote

Russia’s political opposition Monday claimed a symbolic victory in regional elections while the ruling party said exit polls showed they were headed for a win in a vote observers said was marred by fraud.   

Russians in dozens of the country’s 85 regions voted over several days for governors and lawmakers in regional and city legislatures as well as in several by-elections for national MPs. The vote was overshadowed by the alleged poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in the Siberian city of Tomsk ahead of the vote.   In an effort to fight President Vladimir Putin’s electoral machine, Navalny and his team urged voters back candidates against the ruling United Russia party.   

United Russia suffered heavy losses in the city of some 500,000, winning just 24.46 percent of the overall vote compared to 52.27 percent in 2015.
NOVOSIBIRSK AFP Sept14, 2020