Scoring Russia's Duma Vote: State 2, Society 1

Like almost every discussion about Russia in the last ten years, the post-mortem on Russia's recent parliamentary election has polarized simplistically between "optimists" and "pessimists." Optimists argue that people voted, parties participated, the process was free and fair, and the outcome was a victory for "reform." Pessimists believe people did not care, parties did not matter, the process was rigged, and the outcome was a setback for "reform."