Russian regional elections Sunday wereaffected by low participation, with as few as nine per cent of the electorate having cast their vote by noon (0900 GMT) in the city of St Petersburg and in the Moscow region, according to dpa. The Siberian Tomsk region had the highest participation with some 30 per cent by 4pm (1300 GMT). The regional assembly elections in 13 Russian regions and St Petersburg are widely seen as a test run for the state Duma elections at the end of the year and for the presidential elections in March 2008. According to the Russian constitution, President Vladimir Putin is not allowed to stand for re-election in 2008 because he has already served two consecutive terms in office.
