March 4, 2012 -- Updated 0659 GMT (1459 HKT) Moscow (CNN) -- Russians went to the polls Sunday in an election that looks likely to return Vladimir Putin, the current prime minister and former president, to the country's top job. Voting was already under way in Russia's Far East, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported. Cynics call him a Kremlin project, a candidate designed to credibly attract the middle-class vote without posing a genuine threat, and his numbers have remained in single digits. Billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, shown at a demonstration in Moscow last month, is the only first-timer in the presidential race. February 29, 2012 -- Updated 1357 GMT (2157 HKT) As Vladimir Putin bids for a third term as Russian president, Phil Black explains why he could take over as leader of a country that has changed dramatically February 29, 2012 -- Updated 1618 GMT (0018 HKT) Profile of the former KGB agent who has dominated Russian politics for more than a decade. March 2, 2012 -- Updated 1023 GMT (1823 HKT) Russians go to the polls on Sunday March 4 to elect a new president. Who is running and what will the poll mean for Russia? March 2, 2012 -- Updated 1726 GMT (0126 HKT) Phil Black meets Alexei Navalny, who has emerged as one of the most charismatic leaders of Russia's opposition movement. February 27, 2012 -- Updated 1417 GMT (2217 HKT) Anti-corruption groups vow to field an army of volunteer monitors at Russian polling stations. February 24, 2012 -- Updated 0013 GMT (0813 HKT) CNN's Phil Black reports that Vladimir Putin remains the only presidential candidate who can attract such a large crowd. March 1, 2012 -- Updated 1415 GMT (2215 HKT) The Communist Party still has strong support, but CNN's Phil Black reports it's struggling to prevent another Putin term. February 29, 2012 -- Updated 0204 GMT (1004 HKT) Phil Black profiles Russian presidential candidate, Mikhail Prokhorov, and the belief among some that he's a "Kremlin project." February 21, 2012 -- Updated 1849 GMT (0249 HKT) Vladimir Putin's election campaign focuses on militarizing the Russian economy. February 28, 2012 -- Updated 1347 GMT (2147 HKT) CNN's Phil Black investigates the mood in rural Russia ahead of the presidential election on Sunday. December 7, 2011 -- Updated 1058 GMT (1858 HKT) When the history is written of the decline of Vladimir Putin, the parliamentary election -- and the subsequent protests against the results -- will feature prominently. March 2, 2012 -- Updated 1153 GMT (1953 HKT) Mikhail Prokhorov, who has said he will challenge Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in next year's presidential election, has the reputation as a financial sage. December 13, 2011 -- Updated 0649 GMT (1449 HKT) The careers of Russian oligarchs who have sought to wield power against the Kremlin in the media or politics have not tended to go far. September 26, 2011 -- Updated 1455 GMT (2255 HKT) The announcement that Vladimir Putin will, if elected as president, appoint incumbent Dmitri Medvedev as PM brings to mind one of the most famous lines of Italian literature.