Perhaps we should be a little more economical with our use of the d-word. This comes from Fred Weir’s blog at CSM:
“In the final analysis, Pakhomov’s victory was an expression of public support for Putin, and his margin of victory mirrors Putin’s public approval ratings,” says Vyacheslav Igrunov, director of the independent Institute of Humanitarian-Political Studies in Moscow.
But let’s not call it “democracy,” he adds.
“I don’t think the violations during the Sochi campaign were any more than is usual for a Russian election. But it’s difficult to call it a democratic campaign, given the total control of the authorities over the mass media” and other levers of influence, he says.