Tale of two elections

by: Jay Stevens

Mon Dec 03, 2007 at 14:18:06 PM MST

In Russia yesterday, Vladimir Putin's party "swept" "to the kind of landslide long predicted for the parliamentary elections." Putin is mandated to step down from the Russian presidency in March. But that doesn't mean he's going away:

But he has declared that he will retain significant influence, whether as prime minister, leader of his party, United Russia, or a vague role described here as "father of the nation."

There were some voting irregularities in Sunday's election, causing opposition leader and chess master Garry Kasparov calling the election "the most unfair and dirtiest in the whole history of modern Russia ."

Putin's never been one to shy away from power, so it looks like he can create his own role in the future of Russia , a political role that's not limited by the constitution, an office, or much public scrutiny. Kind of like the way the old Soviet Union 's seat of power was centered in the Communist Party leadership, not the government.