The authoritative leader of the Russian Republic of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, won more than 99% of the vote in the legislative and regional elections which were held until Sunday in Russia, Russian agencies reported on Monday.
A former separatist who became loyal to the Kremlin, Ramzan Kadyrov has ruled Chechnya with an iron fist for nearly fifteen years, organizing a cult of personality around his family.
This Monday morning, when a little more than half of the votes had been counted, he had won 99.6% of the vote, according to the Ria Novosti agency.
Massive frauds denounced by the opposition
The Russian opposition denounced this Monday massive fraud in the legislative elections, the Kremlin party claiming a two-thirds super-majority, after a poll from which the detractors of President Vladimir Putin were excluded.
Ramzan Kadyrov traditionally wins results bordering on 100% in the polls in this small Russian republic with a Muslim majority.
During the legislative elections of 2016, he won with 97.9% of the votes.
His regime has been accused by human rights defenders of countless abuses, such as extrajudicial killings as well as the repression of its detractors and sexual minorities.
Portraits everywhere
Close to Vladimir Putin, Ramzan Kadyrov, 44, reigns supreme over Chechnya, a conservative Caucasian republic ravaged by two separatist conflicts at the end of the 1990s.
He imposed himself in power with brutality and with the support of the Kremlin, after the assassination of his father Akhmad in a bomb attack in 2004. In Chechnya, the portraits of Ramzan Kadyrov father and son as well as of Vladimir Putin are ubiquitous.
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