Medvedev orders probe of vote rigging claims

Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s President, ordered his government to investigate allegations of vote rigging in the country’s 4 December 2011 parliamentary elections after large protests in the centre of Moscow the following weekend.

However, Mr Medvedev offered no sign that the Kremlin was prepared to meet any of protesters’ key demands. These included a complete rerun of the election, in which the ruling United Russia party claimed 49% of votes in a poll alleged to have involved widespread fraud.

The fallout from the election has presented Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin with the biggest crisis of his political career and seen protesters mount a personal attack on the prime minister, chanting slogans such as 'Putin is a thief!' and 'Putin, leave the Kremlin!'

ESO: Background information: Russian legislative election, 2011 http://www.europeansources.info/record/russian-legislative-election-2011-2/

ESO: Background information: Kremlin errors turn up pressure on Putin http://www.europeansources.info/record/kremlin-errors-turn-up-pressure-on-putin/

BBC News, 11.12.11: Russia election: Medvedev Facebook promise draws ire http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16132607

Deutsche Welle, 11.12.11: Medvedev dismisses protesters' charges of election fraud http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,15594374,00.html

EUObserver, 10.12.11: MEPs: protests show Putin has lost respect http://euobserver.com/24/114588

RIA Novosti: Russian State Duma Elections 2011 http://en.rian.ru/trend/russian_state_duma_elections_2011/

RIA Novosti, 11.12.11: Medvedev dismissed most Saturday protesters’ demands http://en.rian.ru/russia/20111211/169983450.html

RIA Novosti, December 2011- : Duma elections protests http://en.rian.ru/trend/2011_Duma_elections_protests/

---