President Vladimir Putin says his win in the election will allow Russia to become stronger and more effective.

Speaking at his campaign headquarters, Putin says: "Out of every voice, we are building a common will of the people of Russian Federation."

He also thanks the citizens who came to the polling stations and expresses "special gratitude to our warriors on the line of contact", referring to the front line of the war in Ukraine.

"No matter how hard they tried to scare us, suppress our will, our conscience, no-one has ever succeeded in history. They failed now, and they will fail in the future," he adds.

The Russian election has been described as neither free nor fair by some of his international counterparts.

The former KGB leader, who has been in power since 1999 will lead the country for a fifth term.

But tonight's results were no surprise, as any credible opposition to Vladimir Putin is either in jail, in exile or dead.