Opposition to Putin continues

MOSCOW, March 7 (UPI) -- A Russian opposition group said it wouldn't recognize the weekend presidential election victory for Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Putin claimed more than 60 percent of the vote in the presidential contest, besting his closest rival, Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, by more than 40 percentage points.

Russia's League of Voters announced it wouldn't recognize Putin's victory because of irregularities at the polls, however.

"(It's) impossible to recognize the results of the presidential elections, due to widespread violations," the group was quoted by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty as saying.

The league was established after State Duma election in December. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said that contest was skewed in favor of Putin's United Russia party.

The OSCE said that while the Kremlin allowed for public demonstrations during the campaign season, there were irregularities during the weekend contest that suppressed the chances of Putin's rivals.

Zyuganov had described the outcome of the election as "illegitimate" while opposition leader Alexei Navalny said protests against Putin would continue "until we win," Russia's state-run news agency RIA Novosti reports.