The preliminary results of the Russian parliamentary elections have come out and President Putin’s United Russia party has a clear lead in them.

The Russian Election Commission said that according to the results so far, United Russia has received 57.7 percent of the vote and United Russia is directly ahead in 208 out of 225 constituencies.

According to Russian media reports, 301 seats are required to obtain a constitutional majority in the lower house.

The report further states that out of 450 seats in the Lower House, 225 are elected on party lists, while the remaining 225 are elected directly from constituencies.

It should be noted that this is the first election of the Russian Parliament after the start of the Ukraine war in 2022.

Critics say the Kremlin will likely use the election results as evidence of public support for President Putin’s policies and the war in Ukraine.