GORNO-ALTAYSK -- Aleksandr Berdnikov was approved today for a second term as governor of Russia's southern Altai Republic by the region's legislative assembly, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.
Berdnikov's candidacy, which was proposed by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on January 4, was supported by 33 of 39 assembly deputies.
Bedrnikov, 57, has governed Altai Republic since 2006.
Following Medvedev's proposal of Berdnikov's candidacy, scattered protests against Berdnikov were held in the republic.
Russian media outlets earlier accused Berdnikov of organizing illegal hunting trips. In January 2009, a helicopter crash revealed that government officials -- including Berdnikov's deputy -- were shooting endangered goats in the region.
Seven people died in the accident, including Medvedev's representative to the State Duma, Aleksandr Kosopkin, and Viktor Kaimin, chairman of the Altai Republic's Committee on the Preservation and Exploitation of Natural Resources.