While the final vote and turnout counts could take days or weeks to tally, the high turnout was a promising sign for Russia's reformist parties.
Voter turnout was 53% in the 1993 elections, when Vladimir Zhirinovksy's Liberal Democratic Party of Russia made a surprise showing.
Russian voters, dissatisfied with the result of economic reforms, this year seemed ready to cast protest votes for the Communists.
However, election pundits said a high turnout would favor reformist parties.
Random polls taken at election points on Sunday indicated that many St Petersburg voters were opting for the Communists, with Yabloko and Our Home Russia (OHR) trailing.
At the 209 (northern) constituency, Yegor Gaidar's Democratic Choice Russia (DCR) Yegor Gaidar's Democratic Choice Russia (DCR) was the clear leader during early stages of voting.
"I voted for Gaidar because he doesn't do politics with dirty hands like Stalin did," said one middle-aged woman.
Outside High School No 28 on Vasilyevsky Island, more than half of the voters willing to divulge their choices said they had voted for Communist candidates.
Not everyone was overjoyed with their decision. Some voters felt they simply had no other option.
"We really have no choice," said a middle-aged judo coach. "But I made a choice all the same. I was forced to vote for the Communists; I had to choose the lesser of two evils. It's like choosing between syphilis and AIDS; I chose syphilis."
Launo Viemero, coordinator of the observation effort in St Petersburg, said Sunday night the observation headquarters had received only preliminary reports on the election.
"On Monday we will gather our observations, make our conclusions, and send them to Moscow," he said of the effort organized by the European Union and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
It was reported that voters were denied the chance to toast their ballot with a beer in one local polling station because officials ruled the drink was too political.
Some party representatives complained that the sale of beer at the polling station buffet would favor the Beer Lovers' Party. (SPP, Reuters)