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Russians flock to polling stations as Vladimir Putin's chosen successor, Dmitry Medvedev, casts a ballot in Moscow, in a presidential election expected to deliver him an easy win. Russians voted for a new president on Sunday (March 2) in an election expected to deliver a victory to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin's chosen successor and another blow to Moscow's already tarnished democratic image. Opinion polls predicted an easy win for 42-year-old St. Petersburg lawyer and Kremlin official Dmitry Medvedev that should ensure Putin stays on as the power behind the throne. Residents of Russia's remote far east cast ballots for a new president in sub-zero temperatures on Sunday (March 02) to open voting overshadowed by opposition accusations at pro-Kremlin forces enjoy an unfair advantage. The first of the 96,300 polling stations across this sprawling nation, in the Far Eastern peninsula of Kamchatka, opened at 0800 local time Sunday (2000 GMT Saturday), election officials said. More than 100 million Russians are eligible to vote in the election. With the election result a foregone conclusion, the main interest has focused on what will happen once Medvedev reaches the Kremlin. Analysts have little to go on, since Medvedev has given only a couple of major programme speeches during the campaign and limited himself to one paid-for interview in a weekly, where he talked mainly about his earlier career and personal life. As polls opened in Moscow, some voters chose to show their support for other candidates, despite the almost-certain outcome. "I right away crossed out three of the candidates: Zhirinovsky, Zyuganov and Medvedev. I voted for Bogdanov because does not have any ties with United Russia and he is a democrat," Sara Kuminskaya, a Moscow resident said. "I voted for Zyuganov; I am a Communist supporter and I like Zyuganov's programme, and the Communists are the party that will protect my interests," said another Moscow resident, Ustim. Medvedev, accompanied by wife Svetlana, voted at another Moscow polling station, earlier than his election rivals. Smiling for the cameras, he said he was in a good mood, with spring just around the corner. "Spring is here, even though it's raining, but it's already a new season which is nice," Medvedev said. The last polls to be published said Medvedev would win 70-80 percent, way ahead of his nearest rival, 63-year-old Communist veteran Gennady Zyuganov on 10-16 percent. Turnout was seen at around 70 percent, though critics said it would be inflated by factory managers and state officials who pressure employees to vote. Putin, due to step down in May because of term limits, is by far Russia's most popular politician after presiding over an economic boom and rapid revival in Russian influence overseas. His endorsement in December of Medvedev, a colleague for almost 20 years, instantly catapulted the low-profile bureaucrat into the leading position in the polls.