# Putin's party wins landslide in contested Russian election > United Russia secured a record supermajority in parliamentary elections widely dismissed as undemocratic, giving the Kremlin a mandate to escalate war efforts. - Title: Putin's party wins landslide in contested Russian election - Summary: United Russia secured a record supermajority in parliamentary elections widely dismissed as undemocratic, giving the Kremlin a mandate to escalate war… - Keywords: russia, vladimir putin, united russia, parliamentary election, state duma, ukraine war, kremlin, military mobilization, election rigging, yabloko party banned, occupied territories voting, western condemnation - Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/09/21/what-russia-s-parliamentary-election-results-mean-for-putin-and-the-war - Author: Rebecca Schneid - Published: 2026-09-21T19:50:43+00:00 - Read time: 2 min - Topics: russia, vladimir putin, united russia, parliamentary election, state duma, ukraine war, kremlin, military mobilization, election rigging, yabloko party banned, occupied territories voting, western condemnation ## Putin's party wins record landslide United Russia is projected to win 355 of 450 Duma seats, surpassing its 2016 record of 343 seats with 95% of votes counted after a three-day election. ## First election since Ukraine invasion This is Russia's first parliamentary election since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with the Kremlin framing it as a referendum on the war. ## Occupied territories voted illegally Voting included four partly occupied Ukrainian regions, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, which Russia illegally annexed in 2022 but does not fully control. ## Opposition party barred from running Russia's supreme court banned the federal candidate list of Yabloko, the only registered antiwar party, preventing voters from choosing an alternative to the war. > They were not given the choice to vote against it. ## Election was not free or fair Experts say the playing field was tilted before votes were counted, with opposition silenced, independent media shut out, and international monitors excluded. > This playing field was tilted before the votes were even counted, and this was not by any means a free and fair election. ## Kremlin claims national consolidation Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the results show Russians support Putin and demonstrate the highest level of consolidation within Russian society around the president. ## Parliament could expand war efforts The supermajority could embolden lawmakers to pass drastic legislation expanding military recruitment, mobilization, and war spending at the expense of healthcare and education. ## Election provides political cover The election gives Putin legitimacy to pursue unpopular wartime measures like full mobilization and converting the economy to wartime production mode. > That potentially gives Putin greater political cover and legitimacy for unpopular measures in the future. ## Zelenskyy expects new mobilization Ukraine's president said he believes Russia plans to draft an additional 300,000 troops after the election, though Putin has denied mobilization plans. ## Russia faces economic strain More than four years into the war, Russians face rising living costs from inflation partly tied to military spending, plus fuel shortages from Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries. ## West condemns election as sham France, the UK, Canada, Norway, Australia, and New Zealand called the vote a sham, citing repression of opposition, media bans, and violations of Ukrainian sovereignty. > The veneer of democracy is all that remains in Russia. ## EU calls it democracy setback European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the election was another major setback for Russian democracy, with the Kremlin silencing dissent and barring opposition. ## Key takeaway The election was designed to create an appearance of popular support for Putin's war in Ukraine, not to reflect genuine public sentiment, since opposition parties were barred from competing.