As expected, Russian President Vladimir Putin was re-elected by a landslide in Sunday's presidential election. His leadership now seems almost unchallenged. Opposition parties are weak. Parliament is obedient. Key government posts are held by Putin loyalists. Mr. Putin's tightened grip on power may bolster political stability, but his authoritarian instinct is raising concerns about the future of Russia's fledgling democracy.

President Putin need not worry much about the legislature, in which the pro-Putin ruling bloc commands an absolute majority. Nor does he face any significant criticism from within the government. Immediately before Sunday's election, he dismissed Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, a one-time loyalist to former President Boris Yeltsin. Mr. Putin's victory is a prelude to a more assertive second term. The key word here is stability, though perhaps a better word would be domination. Indeed, the political situation in Russia appears to be revolving around a sole strongman. On his watch the Russian administration is likely to enjoy a spell of "superstability."

Mr. Putin deserves his victory. The election showed most Russians to be more or less satisfied with his performance in his first term. His vigorous economic and foreign policy has received a solid vote of confidence. In his second term he is likely to even more actively pursue his "strong Russia" agenda for doubling the country's economic output and for playing a larger role on the world stage.