TSKHINVALI: South Ossetia's strongman leader tightened his grip on the breakaway Georgian region Monday after a loyal party emerged as the clear winner of legislative elections.

Eduard Kokoity, a former wrestling champion accused by his critics of muzzling opponents and stealing aid money sent from Russia, could now use a parliamentary majority to allow himself to stand for another term in office.

Nine months after Russia and Georgia fought a war over the status of South Ossetia, the mountainous Caucasus region remains largely in ruins and has only been recognized as independent by Moscow and distant Nicaragua.

Final results issued by the election commission after Sunday's elections said Yedinstvo (Unity) -- the party most vocally supportive of Kokoity -- was the clear winner after polling 46.36 percent.

The People's Party, also largely uncritical of Kokoity, won 22.53 percent while the Communists scored 22.25 percent.

"We will work closely together to follow the path of independence that the republic has chosen," Kokoity said as the results were announced.

However none of the four parties competing for the 34 seats in the parliament could be described as overtly critical of the leader after the central election commission barred the two other parties.

The name of Unity resembles Russia's ruling party United Russia and it even used pictures of United Russia party leader Boris Gryzlov on its campaign literature.

"South Ossetia has gone on the United Russia path. A decisive role (in Unity's victory) was played by their active use of the methods of United Russia," Russia's Kommersant daily said.

The sidelined opposition has accused Kokoity of seeking a loyal parliament to push through an amendment allowing him to run again for office when his second term lapses in 2011.

Kokoity said it was too early to say whether he would run again to lead the region of 50,000 people although he did not rule out that possibility.

"There are two and half years left till then and a lot left to do. We are working and working now. I am not thinking about it still," he said in an interview with AFP.

"With what happened in August we need three to four years to rebuild."

But Russia -- which outraged the West by recognising South Ossetia as independent in the wake of the August war with Georgia -- has said South Ossetia should not amend the existing term limits in its constitution.

Sergey Naryshkin, the head of the Russian presidential administration, said on Russian television this month that South Ossetia should not change the existing term limits in its constitution.

But despite the slow pace of reconstruction, many praise Kokoity for his leadership during the August conflict.

"Kokoity has done a lot for the people of South Ossetia, he's fought 20 years for this country," Angela Tedeyeva, a 32-year-old teacher, said as she cast her ballot.

Georgia ridiculed the vote, with the country's Reintegration Minister Temur Iakobashvili saying the elections were "nothing but clownery, a farce and a redistribution of a criminal power."

The election coincided with controversial NATO exercises in Georgia which were due to end on Monday after provoking a furious reaction from Russia.