Putin defends fairness of election
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Xinhua, December 15, 2011
The results of Russia's parliamentary elections on Dec. 4 reflected the views of Russian voters, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Thursday in his annual Q&A session.
In a televised call-in, Putin said protests over alleged election fraud were "minor" and he had ordered web-cameras be installed at all polling stations during next March's presidential election.
"If you are saying that our elections were objective and fair, in my opinion, I have already said publicly that, beyond any doubt, the results of these elections reflect the actual line-up of forces in the country, as well as the fact that the ruling force - United Russia - has lost certain positions," Putin said.
"The (presidential) elections should all be broadcast on the Internet, so that the entire country can see what's happening near every ballot box," he said.
The prime minister also said protests by opposition parties were aimed at next March's election, in which Putin was widely expected to win.
"It is obvious to me that the attacks on the latest election are secondary; their primary goal is the next election, the Russian presidential election," Putin said.
Russia's Central Elections Commission announced last week United Russia had gained an absolute majority in the new Duma, or lower house of parliament. The Communist Party, A Just Russia and the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia were the other parties to win seats.
After the elections, Moscow witnessed mass protests against alleged vote fraud.
