Almost half of all Russians, 44 percent, agree with a popular slogan invented by an opposition leader Alexei Navalny that the ruling United Russia political party is made up of “crooks and thieves,” a recent opinion poll.

      Navalny, an anti-corruption activist who finished second in Moscow’s recent mayoral election, coined the derogatory moniker in a radio interview in February 2011. It had become especially popular among common people after the recent parliamentary elections when United Russia's victory was marred by massive allegations of fraud that evoked a wave of protests.

      In April 2013, some 51 percent of respondents agreed with the slogan, another Levada poll showed, a rise from 38 percent in September 2012. In June this year, almost half of Russians (47 percent) said United Russia was the Kremlin’s “puppet party.”

      The Levada poll whose results were released Monday was conducted on August 23 to 26 among 1,601 people across 45 Russian regions. Its statistical margin of error did not exceed 3.4 percent, the pollster said in a statement.