Russian ruling party's election win confirmed after final count

Despite suffering some losses, the ruling pro-Kremlin party United Russia party has achieved a clear win in the parliamentary election in Russia.
After all ballots were counted, the party achieved 49.8 per cent of the vote, the Central Election Commission announced in Moscow on Tuesday.
The Communists received 18.9 per cent, the right-wing populists of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) of the ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky 7.5 per cent and the Just Russia party 7.4 per cent.
The novice New People party was also just above the 5-per-cent hurdle and entered parliament at its first attempt, with 5.3 per cent of the vote.
The ruling party suffered losses compared to the last vote five years ago. At that time, United Russia received 54.2 per cent of the vote. The Communists made significant gains after garnering just 13.35 per cent five years ago.
All parties represented in the new State Duma are considered close to the Kremlin.
Opposition candidates led by the imprisoned government opponent Alexei Navalny were not admitted. His team spoke of massive electoral fraud, and independent election observers listed thousands of violations.
For President Vladimir Putin, the three-day vote was seen as an important test of mood in the face of widespread discontent - also with a view to the next presidential election in 2024.
Turnout was reported at 51.6 per cent. More than 110 million eligible voters in Russia and abroad were called to cast their ballots. The election ended on Sunday.