Vladimir Putin still has the support of a majority of Russians, his spokesman said Sunday after a mass protest challenged the premier's authority two months before he stands in presidential polls.
Organisers said 120,000 people attended the rally in central Moscow Saturday where protesters chanted slogans against Prime Minister Putin and called for the annulment of disputed December parliamentary elections won by his party.
Police put the numbers at 29,000, but AFP correspondents said the turnout was clearly bigger and more anti-Putin in tone than the first rally two weeks ago which smashed a Russian taboo against mass opposition protests.
"As a politician and a presidential candidate, Putin still has the support of a majority. And we should treat the opinion of a majority with respect," his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told AFP.
He added that Putin was "beyond competition" as a candidate the March 4 presidential polls, where the Russian strongman plans to stand for a third Kremlin term after his four-year stint as prime minister.