International
Putin's party wins elections from which opposition was excluded
Vladimir Putin's United Russia party secured a record majority in the Russian lower house, the Duma, winning over 57 percent of the vote after 95 percent of ballots were counted. The election, held between Friday and Sunday with a 56 percent turnout, resulted in the ruling party holding 355 of 450 seats. Critics and AP News describe the process as fully orchestrated to give Russia the appearance of democracy, noting that genuine opposition parties were barred from participating due to laws prohibiting criticism of the war in Ukraine.
Ozetta summarises; the reporting is the newsroom's