Communist Party candidate Nikolay Kharitonov is the runner-up with 4.32%
Ria Novosti reports: the total turnout, according to the data at 20:37 was 74.22%
Putin’s preliminary result is a record in the history of modern Russia. In 2018, he gained 76.69% in the presidential elections, in 2012, 63.6%. Dmitry Medvedev won in 2008 with the result of 70.28%. In 2004 and 2000, Putin was in the lead from 71.31% and 52.9%, respectively. In 1996 Boris Yeltsin won [rigged with help of US] the second round with the result of 53.82%.
This makes a lot of sense to me and explains the temporary bleed off of support from KPRF to Putin especially for this presidential election. A lot of Russian communists are very patriotic and with a “rally around the flag” effect i can imagine them deciding to support the president in wartime even if they would otherwise have voted KPRF instead. This is not easy for most western communists to understand since we have a very different relationship to our own countries and leaders.
We always have to remember that it is Putin who most Russians see as having led the country out of the horrific situation they were in at the end of the 1990s, massively restoring the economy, standard of living, and the strength and international standing of Russia. They view him as having given them back their dignity. This is limited to Putin himself though and does not translate to other politicians in his party, so once he has left the scene we will see great opportunities for big changes, for good or for bad.
That is also why the West is so desperate to get Putin out because they hope that in the struggle that will inevitably follow him leaving power the way will be opened for the kind of changes they want to see (either bring Russia back to its knees and re-colonize it as in the 90s or “finish the job” and completely dismantle it). Communists must be aware that this is being prepared and themselves prepare, build up their strength and be ready to seize that opportunity to steer Russia once that time comes in the opposite direction instead, the direction of socialism.
But i have to stress here the importance of timely preparation. The West never rests and is always plotting and preparing the ground for their color revolution attempts years and years in advance spending millions and millions of dollars building up their subversion and propaganda networks. We communists must also never rest and never stop organizing, agitating, educating and building a mass working class movement, whether it is in Russia or wherever else we live.