Putin's United Russia party carried a supermajority in 2007. Now, in recent Duma elections it looks like it'll come up short of a majority - maybe 48%.
No, it won't stop Putin from winning the presidency - by any means necessary. But it will mean he won't have a rubber-stamp parliament, which will prove wonderfully frustrating for Caponesque ruling style.
I have few illusions about what that means in real terms. Putin will simply rule by decree and ignore the parliament, which will be a center of genuine gravity for a growing opposition to his political delusions of grandeur.
I had wanted Putin to abstain from this egomaniacal choice, but size matters and we're talking one towering behemoth.
But, in the end, I think this will be a good thing for Russia - the pol who stupidly and stubbornly outstays his welcome. That choice will trigger the evolution that's much needed there, and the world won't suffer anything of importance out of Russia in the meantime.
Russia can once again be an important country, but Putin's inability to move anything there in the direction of the future means the country will remain on the sidelines for the near-term.