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This hour put see this live image in moscow. people deciding on eight candidates who are vying for the top spot there, but the russian president vladimir putin is by far the lead contender. >> he is expected to easily win re-election after 18 years in power. he is already russia's longest serving leader since soviet dictator joseph stalin. >> we're live there and jill dorty there to give context and perspective in our moscow bureau. matthew, first to you at the polling station if the give us a sense of the mood of voters as they head to the polls. >>. >> reporter: well, i think it's upgeet bec...

In russia this hour. there are eight candidates that are vying for the top spot. fair to say the russian vladimir putin is by far the lead contender. >> he is expected to easily win re-election after 18 years in power. he is already russia's longest serving leader since soviet dictator joseph stalin. cnn is live in moscow. matthew chance following the election from the polls and cnn contributor jill dougherty is there to give us further context. first to you, matthew there at the polling place. no one questions who will twhwi this election. are voters enthusiastic? >> reporter: well, i mean, l...

Now almost the longest serving leader, dictator in the world. a couple older than him. >> ayatollah is 77 years old. i think we're dealing with the psychology of 80 million people but also the psychology of one individual. in 1978, five months before the shaw of iran's government collapse, the ciass, what they didn't know was the shaw had advanced cancer and didn't have the mental or physical fitness and we didn't know about the fitness of ayatollah. that's only what we'll be able to tell in retrospect. >> if you look at when the regimes start to seem vulnerable, it really is more when they st...

The supreme leader of iran, who is now almost the longest serving leader, dictator in the world. i mean, a couple older than him -- but. >> ayatollah khamenei is 79 years old. he hasn't left the country since 1989. we're dealing with the psychology of one individual autocrat and in 1978, five months before the iran government collapsed, the cia said with high confidence that the shaw regime was secure. like wise, we don't know about the physical fitness and mental fitness of ayatollah khamenei. that's only something we'll be able to tell in retrospect. >> if you look at when these regimes star...

Psychological. he looks at vladimir putin and sees a man who has control of violence, who can order interventions in foreign countries at the click of a hand. i think for that, it's a slightly boyish crush on the idea of the gangster boss, the swaggering god father, and i think that's something that derives from donald trump's personal psychology. >> putin will probably out last as the longest serving leader of russia. do you think in a sense modern russia is putin's russia? . >> yeah, i think putin will be the dominant figure of the early 21st century and ruling to russian tradition and succe...