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Kremlin man wins Chechen vote
MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- Chechnya's Kremlin-appointed leader has been declared the winner of a presidential election marred by claims the vote was a sham. Chechen administration chief and acting president Akhmad Kadyrov received 81.1 percent of the vote, with about three-quarters of the ballots counted, said election commission chairman Abdul-Kerim Arsakhanov. Turnout was 85 percent, he said. Final tallies were expected Wednesday. Russia hopes the poll, which comes four years after its troops returned to the separatist republic, will be seen as legitimizing local autonomy. The election results will put pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to offer more autonomy to Chechnya, "but not at the cost of breaking up the Russian federation," Peter Truscott, a Russia analyst, told CNN. A former candidate for the Chechen presidency said Sunday's election was "based on lies" and that ballot boxes were stuffed days ago with ballots marked for Kadyrov. Millionaire businessman Malik Saidullayev, disqualified from the race in September, said the Russian government has used "dirty methods" to try to get Kadyrov elected, including threatening employees of factories in Chechnya with the loss of their jobs if they failed to support Kadyrov. Russian officials said they have received no reports of irregularities in the voting. Western election observers refused to monitor the polls because of security concerns. "Most Chechens are skeptical of the whole process," Truscott said. Kadyrov, a former Muslim religious leader and rebel who fought against Moscow in the first Chechen conflict, changed sides and three years ago and was named by the Kremlin as Chechen administrator. Critics accuse him of corruption and intimidation of his political opponents. Saidullayev told CNN he believed the election would heighten tensions in Chechnya, leading to more fighting in the republic. The election was peaceful, although three polling stations came under fire Saturday night. There was tight security; the 426 polling stations were guarded by 15,000 Russian troops. Russian forces and its administration have come under a number of rebel attacks, including a truck bombing of the Chechen administration headquarters, a Moscow theater siege and a twin suicide bombing at a rock concert. The elections follow a March referendum in which Chechens approved a constitution that confirms the republic's status as part of Russia. The Russian parliament has discussed offering Chechnya substantial autonomy, but no clear terms have been stated. Putin refuses to speak to rebel leaders and has branded the battle as Russia's war on terror. The Kremlin has been grappling with insurgency in the region for the past decade, having pulled out in 1996 after a disastrous 20-month war. They returned in 1999. Separatist rebels have vowed to fight on against Russian forces in a conflict in which tens of thousands of people have died or made homeless. -- CNN Moscow Bureau Chief Jill Dougherty contributed to this report. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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