made it into the second round but they again took it away from

Thousands rally behind Putin foe to challenge ‘rigged’ Moscow vote

MOSCOW (Reuters) Thousands cheap Canada Goose of cheering supporters answered a call by Russian opposition uk canada goose leader Alexei Navalny on Monday Canada Goose Outlet to rally in protest against a Moscow election he said was rigged cheap canada goose uk to hand victory to an ally of President canada goose uk outlet Vladimir Putin.

Supporters of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny attend a rally in Moscow, September 9, 2013. Canada Goose sale REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva

To chants of Navalny Canada Goose online and buoyed by his own unexpectedly strong showing in Sunday mayoral election, the anti corruption canada goose black friday sale campaigner demanded a runoff be held between him and Kremlin backed rival Sergei Sobyanin.

The turnout of at least 10,000 people, many of them wearing badges declaring mayor Navalny was a direct challenge to the Kremlin which he hailed as the birth of a new opposition movement after more than 13 years of Putin rule.

so long now we all wanted to take part in a victory rally. We are tired of losing for 13 years now. canada goose store I am sure we get a second round, he told the Canada Goose Online crowd gathered on a square across the river Moscow from the Kremlin.

To applause and cheers, he shouted: serious political opposition is born in Canada Goose Coats On Sale Russia.

Protesters many of them men in their 20s and 30s chanted round, second round and is a uk canada goose outlet coward.

Results from Sunday mayoral election showed Sobyanin Canada Goose Parka just cleared the 50 percent mark needed to win outright and put Navalny in second place on 27 percent.

Sobyanin defended the vote late on Sunday as cleanest, most competitive, most open election in the history of Moscow.

Russian opposition leader Alexei canadian goose jacket Navalny (C) and his wife Yulia leave the stage during a rally in Moscow, September 9, 2013. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva

By challenging the results, Navalny raised the prospect of a new election stand off in Russia, 19 months after allegations of fraud in a parliamentary ballot inspired the buy canada goose jacket cheap biggest buy canada goose jacket protests against Putin since he rose to power in 2000.

we found out that we can win. Now we have to understand whether we can defend our victory, he said. made it into the second round canadagoose-coats but they again took it away from us.

REVIVING PROTESTS Representatives from Putin United canada goose clearance Russia party, which dominates politics nationwide, still won most of the roughly 7,000 regional and local contests held across Russia on Sunday.

But among the victors was Yevgeny Roizman, an anti drugs activist who was elected Canada Goose Jackets mayor of Yekaterinburg, the country fourth biggest city.

Slideshow (10 Images)

He narrowly saw off canada goose uk black friday a United canada goose coats Russia candidate in a vote which gave the canada goose uk shop opposition a glimmer of hope that it was capable of defeating pro Kremlin candidates who had better funding and more access to canada goose coats on sale state media.

His victory, and Navalny surge, prompted suggestions that the Kremlin had allowed a greater degree of freedom in Sunday voting after months of pressure on the opposition.

Navalny called for a protest on Bolotnaya Square, the scene of the last big demonstration against Putin in 2012 on the eve of his inauguration canada goose clearance sale for a third term as president. Police broke it up after clashes with protesters and detained more than 400.

Opposition leaders portray that 2012 rally as the start of a crackdown on dissent canada goose to tighten Putin grip on power, and regard Monday rally as a chance to revive protests.

Reigniting such rallies will not be easy. The opposition remains divided and opinion polls show Putin is Russia most popular leader, with strong support outside the big cities.

Navalny also has a five year jail term for theft hanging over him unless his appeal against the conviction succeeds. He says the sentence was Putin revenge for challenging him and canada goose factory sale that it was intended to remove him as a political threat.

Navalny attracted votes beyond his core support, said Dmitry Oreshkin, a political analyst with click over here opposition sympathies. I am skeptical about the prospects of using this victory to mobilize the protest movement again on a mass scale.