"Putin Acknowledges Navalny's Death and Agrees to Prisoner Swap"

Russian President Vladimir Putin won a fifth term in a highly stage-managed election with a landslide 87% of the votes, addressing his supporters and the press at his campaign headquarters and making his first public comments on the death of his political nemesis, Alexei Navalny, calling it a "sad event" and claiming he had been prepared to involve Navalny in a prisoner swap with the West. Navalny's supporters accused Putin of ordering his death, while the Kremlin denied any involvement. Putin's victory was seen as predictable, with opposition figures harassed, intimidated, and imprisoned, making his reelection a foregone conclusion. The U.S., U.K., and Ukraine decried the election as "neither free nor fair," while thousands of Russians living abroad participated in protests following a call from Navalny's widow.