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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good evening, colleagues,

The official results of the recent major and highly significant election campaign for our country have now been finalised. I congratulate you and your supporters on your success and on the results you have achieved.

Not only did all the parliamentary parties reaffirm their status, but they also contributed to strengthening Russia’s political system, state sovereignty and social stability.

The election campaign was conducted properly; it was substantive and constructive, and demonstrated a high level of maturity in our political culture.

The public support given to your parties and the people’s trust must be justified through all your subsequent work in local and regional government bodies and in the federal parliament. I want to emphasise this in particular: this work must be joint and team-based.

I would also like to note the competent and well-coordinated and professional organisation of the election. Election commissions at all levels demonstrated their competence. Staff performed their duties honestly and impartially, in challenging, almost battle-like conditions in the border regions, in Donbass and Novorossiya, demonstrating courage, bravery, and in many cases heroism. Unfortunately, as you and I know, there were also casualties. Naturally, all these cases will be duly recognised, and these people will be nominated for state decorations, although, unfortunately, some of them will receive them posthumously. The state must do everything possible to support the families of our fallen comrades.

The voting procedure itself was made as convenient as possible for citizens, including through the three-day voting period and the wide availability of electronic services.

Of course, I would like to thank the tens of millions of voters and citizens of our country. Their active participation in the voting and the high turnout guaranteed the indisputable and absolute legitimacy of these elections.

All attempts to disrupt the election campaign and interfere in our domestic affairs failed completely. We know that such attempts were planned and undertaken, including through the use of terrorist methods and tools of foreign intelligence services. But our people defended the sovereign right of the Russian people to determine their own future.

You know, it is a tradition for the head of state, the President, to appeal to voters before an election, calling on them to take an active part in the voting. That was the case this time as well. At the same time, all of us – I, and indeed every person in Russia, in our country – understood that attempts would be made to interfere and that, despite the measures being taken by the Defence Ministry and law enforcement agencies, threats, and significant threats at that, remained.

Yet, when I saw the queues at polling stations on television, I was once again convinced that our people are resilient, courageous and well informed, and that they understand perfectly well what is happening around Russia. It became clear that such people cannot be intimidated, and that such people, such a country, cannot be defeated. Therefore, victory will undoubtedly be ours.

The election once again demonstrated the people’s support for the heroes fighting for Russia, and the election confirmed this once again. It is only natural that all the parliamentary parties included among their candidates veterans of the special military operation who had demonstrated their loyalty to Russia on the battlefield. And I have no doubt that they will serve the Fatherland with the same dedication on the parliamentary and civic front.

Naturally, the parties proposed different approaches to addressing various problems. That is a very good thing. What is significant, however, is that the programmes of all responsible patriotic forces focused on genuinely unifying priorities in the areas of security, demographics, the economy and the social sphere.

Following the election, United Russia strengthened its leading position, which means that its responsibility for the course and momentum of the legislative process and for the overall result will be even greater. I am confident that United Russia, as before, will establish comradely and partnership-based cooperation with the other factions and, in keeping with tradition, ensure effective and fair representation of all political forces in the leadership of the State Duma and its committees.

I believe dialogue with the parties that participated in the campaign but did not win seats will also be useful. All the valuable ideas and proposals they put forward should be taken up and put to work. It is precisely through the participation of all constructive political forces, civil society structures and institutions that a unifying agenda is shaped.

The main thing – both in the State Duma and at all other levels of government – is to work together, with an understanding of the enormous responsibility we all bear to the people and the country; to find optimal, balanced solutions through professional dialogue, and to serve our Fatherland and the people of Russia with dedication.

I would now like to hear your assessments of how the election was conducted, how the election campaign was organised and, of course, your ideas about what should be made a priority and how the work of the State Duma should be organised.

Please, let us begin.

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