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| Putin's United Russia party suffers poll setback | |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Exit polls in Russia's parliamentary elections point to a sharp drop in support for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's United Russia party. | |
| Polls for Russian state TV and the state-backed polling organisation showed United Russia got about 48.5% of the vote, down from 64% in 2007. | |
| That would give Mr Putin's party 220 members in the 450-seat lower house. | |
| Russia's only independent monitoring group, Golos, logged 5,300 complaints alleging violations of election laws. | Russia's only independent monitoring group, Golos, logged 5,300 complaints alleging violations of election laws. |
| Its party chairman said United Russia hoped to remain the largest party in the lower house of parliament, or Duma. | |
| 'Violations and fraud' | |
| If the result is confirmed, United Russia could lose its current two-thirds majority which allowed it to change the constitution unchallenged. | If the result is confirmed, United Russia could lose its current two-thirds majority which allowed it to change the constitution unchallenged. |
| The atmosphere in Moscow today was a strange mix of apathy, patriotism, and intimidation. | |
| For much of the day, there was a steady flow of voters through polling stations. But there was no great enthusiasm for the parties on offer. | |
| Some told us it was their duty to vote; others said they were there to prevent someone else stealing their vote. | |
| In the centre of Moscow, near the Kremlin, hundreds of interior ministry troops were on standby in large military trucks. | |
| It was not clear if they were there as a show of strength, or just to prevent illegal demonstrations. | |
| As we were filming in a polling station, our cameraman was taken away by police who wanted to watch his tape, though he was released with an apology after an hour. | |
| And all round the city centre, thousands of members of pro-Kremlin youth groups were attending conferences and concerts. One of them openly admitted they were there to organise counter-demonstrations against any opposition protests. | |
| Nonetheless, party chairman Boris Gryzlov says the party hopes to get a majority in the Duma. | |
| Exit polls suggest the Communists will take second place, with about 20% of the vote. | |
| "We have received thousands of calls from regional offices, confirming massive violations and fraud," said Communist Party deputy head Ivan Melnikov on the party website. | |
| "Throughout the day, it was like receiving reports from a war zone." | |
| The BBC's Steve Rosenberg, in Moscow, says if confirmed, the result will be a significant embarrassment to Mr Putin, three months before he is scheduled to run again for the Russian presidency. | |
| He says opposition parties are alleging widespread fraud, including the stuffing of ballot boxes and voters being offered money. | |
| Mr Putin served as president from 2000 to 2008 but was prohibited by the constitution from running for a third consecutive term. | |
| Golos, whose monitors are not affiliated with any party, said its website suffered a cyber-attack. | |
| The organisation - whose name means "voice" or "vote" - is funded largely by the US and EU. | |
| Prime Minister Putin has accused foreign powers of meddling in election preparations, while Duma members have questioned why a foreign-funded organisation is allowed to monitor Russian elections. | |
| Moscow police said more than 100 people were arrested at an opposition demonstration in the city centre on Sunday. |