All news
Updated at: 

Putin says US electoral system has problems

It’s up to Washington to change the old scheme, Russian President added

MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes there are some problems in the US electoral system, but it’s up to Washington to change the old scheme, he said in an interview with "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" TV program on Rossiya-1 TV channel.

"It’s absolutely evident - it’s clear for everyone in the world - it seems to me that this is clear for Americans that there are some problems in the US electoral system," Putin said. "It’s none of our business whether they need to change something or not. This is a matter of the American people and their representatives in the parliament, and the president, the American people and if they are satisfied - well, for God's sake," Putin noted.

The Russian leader noted that "now it’s widely known even for the broad public that a candidate who wins in a state gets the votes of all electors." "Well, let’s say there are 20 of them. He won eleven but gets all 20. But maybe it turns that there is a fewer number of voters behind these electors. So in US history it happened three times, in my view, when a president is elected by a bigger number of electors while there is a fewer number of voters behind them. Is this democratic?" Putin said.

Meanwhile, Putin noted he said this not to castigate the US political system or the election system. "This was done a long time ago. As one of American colleagues told me previously "we have got accustomed to this." That’s the practice," he noted.

It’s up to Americans to evaluate the legitimacy of US election, Putin added.

"Well, whether the authorities are legitimate or not, first of all, it’s up to the Americans to evaluate this," the Russian leader said. Putin noted that "this is an extremely important thing, because the confidence of the people of this or that country in the political leadership depends on it.".

Election process in the US

Flaws in the US election system don’t give the US any right to accuse other countries that their election legislation is not perfect, Putin added. "This [election process in the US] certainly gives no one the right to point the finger at the flaws in other political systems, including in election legislation," Putin said.

The Russian leader also stressed that Moscow opposes meddling in its domestic affairs what the Americans do.

"Try to observe the election there. They don’t let observers closer than seven meters and even farther," he stressed. Meanwhile, he noted that this is a US domestic affair.