The fact is that Putin allows opposition parties to function and they have support of about 50% of the electorate. Russia is a huge country covering about one-sixth of the total land area of the world. It is difficult for parties to organize countrywide and the system of voting is first past the post and not run-offs.
In the last Parliamentary election Putin's Party got 49,2% of the votes cast compared to 50,8% of the opposition parties.
In the last Presidential election the Opposition Parties tabled a motion in the Duma to change the election day and it was changed, In the actual election there were 10 opposition candidates - the strongest one being from the Russian Communist Party. Putin won easily and there is a reason for that as well - it has nothing to do with dictatorship. After the fall of the communist regime in 1992 Russia went through a period of extremely serious economic problems - I in fact went for a vacation in Russia in 1993 and found there were shortages of everything imaginable. After Putin took over the Government the economy recovered and shortages were eliminated.
The story of the dictatorship is thin and based on propaganda. I do not say Putin is not a bad politician and should not be criticized - what I am saying is that people should stick with facts and that you will not get that from the media in the EU countries and the USA. Putin has deficiencies - but is a notch above the corrupt filth that is running or better still ruining the USA with Biden as puppet President.
With Biden and his mafia crime family associates there is more corruption in the USA than in Russia. Corruption in the USA leadership involved China, Russia, Iran and Ukraine and those countries know that Biden is a farce and he can be manipulated as a result. What Obama did as President was to use the Zuma system - capture the FBI, the CIA and the Justice Department and no corruption by Democrats will ever be investigated. The attack is now on State and local police - which has not yet been captured - and the reason is clear. Get rid of the police and corruption can be extended to State and local level by Democrat politicians. The loot in fact runs into billions of dollars annually.