Medvedev Wins in a Landslide

Putin pupil has asked current prez to be PM

By Matt Cantor, Newser Staff

Posted Mar 2, 2008 2:53 PM CST

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Medvedev Wins in a Landslide — People hold flags of the pro-Kremlin youth movement Young Russia as they watch a concert in Red Square with St. Basil's Cathedral in the background, in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, March 2, 2008. Vladimir Putin's handpicked successor Dmitry Medvedev was cruising to an easy victory in Russia's presidential... (Associated Press)

On par with expectations, Dmitry Medvedev has won Russia’s presidential election with 69.6% of the vote, an exit poll says. His closest rival took just 17.2%. The victory likely means little change for Russia, as Medvedev has asked current president Vladimir Putin to be his prime minister after Putin leaves office in May, Reuters reports.

Russians see Medvedev, a Putin disciple, as the best way to maintain the country’s current economic boom. But some observers raised questions about the fairness of the one-sided election. “This is a KGB operation to transfer power from one person to another,” said a former premier. Medvedev's rival threatened legal action over irregularities, but did not challenge Medvedev’s victory. (More Russian elections stories.)

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