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.

Putin in power longer than anyone since Stalin

Vladimir Putin has already been in power for 24 years in one way or another and is now on course for another six.

As he heads into a fifth term, he's already served 20 years as president and four as prime minister, when he was widely considered as in charge anyway.

At 71, he's already led Russia longer than any ruler since Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, who spent almost 31 years in power.

Russia's constitution was amended in 2020, increasing the presidential term from four to six years and giving Putin a clean slate to run again by cancelling out his previous terms.

Theoretically, he could seek a sixth term and continue until 2036, which would give him longer in power than Catherine the Great in the 18th Century.