Vladimir Putin re-elected as Russian president

From the Arctic to the International Space Station, Russia rolled out an elaborate presidential-election-day spectacle designed to show the breadth of Putin’s public support as he extends his tenure to 2024.

Incumbent Russian leader Vladimir Putin is set to secure a resounding victory in the Russian presidential election, according to partial results made public by the electoral commission.

Vladimir Putin is leading with 76.56 percent of the vote, well above the simple majority needed to avoid a run-off.

First-time Communist Party candidate Pavel Grudinin is running second with 11.92 percent, while veteran nationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky, who first ran against Boris Yeltsin in 1991, rounds out the top three with 5.77 percent.

None of the other five candidates is on track to receive more than two percent of the vote.

The early results are in line with exit-polls conducted by Russian polling agencies FOM, which predicted Putin would take 77 percent of the vote, and VCIOM, which forecast a final share of 73.9 percent for the current president.

Ella Pamfilova, head of the Russian Central Election Commission, has said that there were no major violations during the vote, and that only “minor and local complaints” were received.

Shortly after the first results were announced, Vladimir Putin addressed his supporters at a massive anniversary rally in Moscow’s Red Square, marking Crimea's reunification with Russia, and talked to reporters in his election campaign HQ. He thanked his backers and answered questions on the hottest political issues.

Putin was first elected to the Kremlin in 2000, and again four years later. Constitutionally barred from serving more than two consecutive terms, he did not run in 2008, the same year presidential terms were extended from four years to six years. Putin won 63.6 percent of the vote in 2012, and, if the early results are confirmed, he will now stay in his post until 2024, the year he turns 72.

Vladimir Putin is making an address in his electoral campaign headquarters. Putin leads the elections with some 76.56 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results.

Vladimir Putin expressed gratitude to all his supporters and voters, stating that the election results clearly indicate that the people support his political course, despite the hard times Russia recently went through.

Speaking with the reporters at his HQ, Putin addressed the hottest political issues. The president commented on the Skripal case and the accusations the UK has raised against Russia. Putin dismissed them, stating that it was “nonsense and absurd to claim that Russia would do anything like that before the elections and the World Cup.”

Russia’s leader condemned the situation in Ukraine, stating that the Kiev's decision to block Russian diplomatic facilities and prevent voters from accessing polling stations was a clear violation of international laws.

One of the reporters asked the president whether “we’ll see a new Putin or old Putin” in the next six years. “Everything changes. We all change,” Putin said with a smile. He also laughed off a question about running again in 2024.

Putin’s address came as the votes are still being counted. According to preliminary results, he has secured a decisive lead with some 75 percent of vote after around half of the ballots were processed.