Russians went to the polls in local and regional elections on Sunday, the 8th of September. Although elections were held across the country,  the capital city, Moscow, received the most attention. The city has been at the centre of protests from opposition candidates and their supporters.

Why Moscow?

In July, some opposition candidates in Moscow were disqualified from running for parliamentary seats. While the electoral commission explained that this was because the candidates failed to secure the required number of valid signatures to run in the elections, the opposition believed it was a move designed to tip the election in the favour of the ruling party.

Since then, opposition activists have taken to the streets in nationwide protests which often led to the violent crackdown on and arrest of protesters.

Alexey Navalny, a prominent opposition figure called on supporters to back a “smart voting” strategy. He enjoined voters to cast their ballot for candidates who have the best chance at defeating a pro-Kremlin candidate.

Did “Smart Voting” Work?

Before Sunday’s election, the 45-seat Moscow City Parliament was dominated by the ruling United Russia party. The protests had reportedly sunk the party’s popularity so much that no candidate formally ran on its ticket. However, 25 of the candidates it backed won seats in the parliament, lower than the 38 it won in the 2014 elections.

Navalny took to Twitter to praise the results, crediting “smart voting” for delivering a “fantastic result.” The elections, however, were not all bad news for the ruling party. Its candidates won in the 16 gubernatorial races.

Dmitry Peskov, spokesman of President Putin said United Russia did well overall, despite Moscow’s results. Peskov was quoted to have said: “In general, the election campaign across Russia was very successful for the United Russia party. It won more in some places than others. But in general, for the country, the party showed its political leadership.”

With parliamentary elections due in 2021, many analysts see the vote as a test of “the opposition’s ability to mobilise support and the authorities’ willingness to tolerate dissent,” the Guardianreports.

Navalny told reporters before the election: “Today we are fighting to destroy United Russia’s monopoly.”