Putin casts his ballot in Moscow. (AP)

Moscow, March 4 (Agencies): Prime Minister Vladimir Putin claimed victory in Russia’s presidential election today, with tears rolling down his cheeks, but Opposition and independent observers said the vote was marred by widespread violations.

“I promised you we would win. We have won. Glory to Russia,” Putin told a rally just metres from the Kremlin in the centre of Moscow.

Putin tallied 58-59 per cent of the votes, according to exit polls cited by state television. Communist Party candidate Gennady Zyuganov received about 18 per cent, according to the survey. The others — nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, socialist Sergei Mironov and billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov — were in single digits.

But if thousands of claims of violations made by independent observers and Putin’s foes are confirmed, they could undermine the legitimacy of his victory and fuel protests. The Opposition is gearing up for a massive rally in downtown Moscow on Monday.

“These elections are not free... that’s why we’ll have protests tomorrow. We will not recognise the President as legitimate,” said Mikhail Kasyanov, who was Putin’s first Prime Minister before going into the Opposition.

Golos, Russia’s leading independent elections watchdog, said it received numerous reports of “carousel voting”, in which busloads of voters are driven around to cast ballots multiple times.

Alexei Navalny, one of the Opposition’s most charismatic leaders, said observers trained by his organisation also reported seeing extensive use of the practice.

Evidence of widespread vote fraud in December’s parliamentary election drew tens of thousands to protest against Putin, who was President in 2000-2008 before moving into the Prime Minister’s office because of term limits.

They were the largest outburst of public anger in post-Soviet Russia and demonstrated growing exasperation with massive corruption, rising social inequality and tight controls over political life under Putin.

Putin has dismissed the protesters’ demands, casting them as a coddled minority of the urban elite working at western behest to weaken Russia.