United Russia has dominated the State Duma for many years, but the party's popularity has declined 24 per cent since 2007.
The ruling party will hold its annual congress in advance of parliamentary elections in December, but neither Vladimir Putin, the prime minister, nor Dmitry Medvedev, the president, have announced their nomination for the presidency yet.
As Al Jazeera's Neave Barker reports from Moscow, whoever runs for president will be concerned about the party's sliding popularity.
