Putin party suffers big decline in Russia-exit polls

MOSCOW: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's ruling party suffered a big decline in Russia's parliamentary election on Sunday, winning less than half of votes cast, according to the two biggest exit polls published after voting closed.

According to the poll from state pollster VTsIOM, Putin's United Russia party won 48.5 percent of the vote followed by the Communists with 19.8 percent, LDPR with 11.4 percent and Just Russia with 12.8 percent.

An exit poll by FOM shown on state television showed United Russia won 46 percent, a result which the pollster projected would give the party just 220 of the 450 State Duma seats, far below the 315 seats it won in the last election in 2007.