Medvedev slams own party over vote mishandling

The Russian president has accused his own party of using its dominance and official connections to shape the results of the recent local elections in its favor.

"We need to learn to win, all of us, in fact we need to learn to win in open contests," Dmitry Medvedev told the United Russia party's annual convention in St Petersburg on Saturday.

His remarks were a surprising criticism of the United Russia's party, which is led by his predecessor Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Medvedev noted that the party must free itself from some of the party's regional branches that used their dominance in the votes and “shed such bad political habits.”

"Elections must express the people's will in free competition between ideas and programs, but they turn into a different story when democratic procedures are mixed with administrative ones," he said.

In October, the ruling party crushed opposition parties in local elections held across much of Russia.

The opposition said that the poll was marred by reports of multiple voting and dubious counts. It also claimed opposition candidates were hindered from campaigning and some were denied places on the ballot, but election officials dismissed the complaints.

After the elections, Putin and Medvedev defended the party, while adding that claims of violations needed to be investigated and the culprits punished.

The president's new remarks, however, were aimed at deflecting criticism of the vote rather than challenging Putin's power in Russian politics.