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Putin Warns Against Election Dirty Tricks

© RIA Novosti . Yana Lapikova / Go to the mediabankPutin Warns Against Election Dirty Tricks
Putin Warns Against Election Dirty Tricks - Sputnik International
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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned against the use of “dishonest” political tricks ahead of the March presidential elections.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned against the use of “dishonest” political tricks ahead of the March presidential elections.

“It’s very important to fight against dishonest methods of political combat, especially when the elections are already labeled unfair and illegitimate before they even took place,” Putin said during a meeting with young lawyers in Moscow.

Putin, who held the presidential post from 2000 to 2008, is widely predicted to win the March vote, however, analysts suggest growing discontent could see him forced into a runoff.

Claims of vote rigging during December's parliamentary elections sparked mass street protests against the prime minister and his United Russia party.

Thousands of independent and party-affiliated monitors have signed up to observe the elections which protesters fear may be rigged in Putin’s favor.

The next nationwide day of protest is planned for Saturday 4 February.

There have been reports in the liberal media of state employees being coerced to attend a counter-rally in Moscow in support of Putin.

The former president recently declared he did not need fraud to win but said on Wednesday he would “not come out with bile” if he failed.

Only four challengers remain after election officials refused to register Grigory Yavlinsky, head of the liberal opposition party Yabloko.

Those taking part in the election race are:

- Veteran Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov,

- Liberal Democratic Party head Vladimir Zhirinovsky,

- Sergei Mironov, a former speaker of the upper house of parliament who is now head of the quasi-opposition A Just Russia party,

- Billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, seen by critics as a “Kremlin project” set up to attract the votes of the discontented middle class

Prokhorov took the leadership of a pro-business party, Right Cause, in June last year but quit following a split he blamed on the then deputy head of the presidential administration Vladislav Surkov.

Putin said on Wednesday he helped create the party in 2008 but did not specify.

He also said he may offer top government posts to his “political opponents” if he won the election.

“As I said earlier, I have offered jobs to politically committed people from parties that are considered to be the opposition, such as Right Cause, Yabloko,” he said.

The Prime Minister also said he could offer observer mandates to Yabloko, whose monitors were disqualified when Yavlinsky was banned.

Yabloko co-leader Sergei Mitrokhin told RIA Novosti the party would “look into the proposal.”

Putin also said Russia may have a female president in the future and pledged support for such a candidate.

“Women are very thorough in doing their job," said Putin. "In our country a woman can not just put forward her candidacy but could eventually become the head of state. I do not rule this out and, in future, I may even support this.”

He Putin cited the example of Tarja Halonen, who has been president of Finland for 12 years, saying “she is a superb head of state, a measured and experienced specialist and a kind person.”

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