Putin's New Role

MOSCOW (AFP) — President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday agreed to head Russia's ruling party in a significant shift of the political landscape three weeks before he hands power to successor Dmitry Medvedev.

Putin, who leaves the Kremlin after two terms on May 7, also confirmed he would become prime minister under Medvedev.

"With gratitude I accept the proposal of the party members and their leadership.... I am ready to take on the additional responsibility and head United Russia," he told a party congress in Moscow after being urged to take the post.

The 55-year-old ex-KGB officer's announcement, carried live on state-run television, signalled a reordering of Russia's political mix on the eve of Medvedev's presidential debut.

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Right before Medvedev takes power Putin gives himself one more head role in the government. It has been known that Putin would be the Prime Minister, but he is now also going to be the leader of the most powerful political party in Russia. When Medvedev finally takes power it will be interesting to see whether Putin takes over any more roles and just how much he cuts back.

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Hunger for Speech

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — A Russian opposition leader accused of hitting a policeman has gone on a hunger strike to protest his detainment, which he believes is politically motivated, his lawyer said Wednesday.


Maxim Reznik, leader of the Yabloko party in St. Petersburg, began the hunger strike on Tuesday, when a city court ruled that he should remain in custody for two months while the case is under investigation, attorney Boris Gruzd said.


Reznik was arrested before an anti-Kremlin protest was to take place Monday, led by former chess champion Garry Kasparov. Reznik is a St. Petersburg organizer of the protests held by Kasparov's opposition coalition.



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In the US freedom of speech and peaceful protest are rights that we may sometimes take for granted, but as seen in this article these rights are rare in Russia. A man supposedly having a peaceful protest over Sunday's election was detained for two months. That is another thing that would not happen in the US. He is not being charged, just held until they can "research." Two months is a long time to research over a protest march. Will these violations of rights continue or will Medvedev lead to change.

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Russia...Voter Fraud?...Never!

The two top rivals to the man who appears to have won Russia's presidential election alleged violations Sunday, Russian news agencies reported.

Communist Party chief Gennady Zyuganov and ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky spoke out after electoral officials and exit polls pointed to an easy victory for Kremlin-backed candidate Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin's favored successor.

"It seems that we don't have elections but a procedure of confirming the appointed president," Interfax quoted Zhirinovsky as saying. "This disgusts not me but the citizens of Russia."

The remarks were striking for Zhirinovsky, whose presidential bid was widely seen as a Kremlin-supported move to lend legitimacy to the vote, in which Medvedev's victory was a foregone conclusion.

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As predicted Medvedev won with a hefty margin of the votes, but his competitors aren't satisfied. Apparently they feel that they didn't have a chance in the election. One would most likely have to agree with them. Putin did hold a power over his people, and he is passing this on to Medvedev. If a person doesn't know better then of course Russia is a great country, but in actuality it is not quite the democracy that the US is. Zhirinovsky made the comment that the overwhelming win by Medvedev upset the citizens of Russia, and I may not know much but if 70% of them voted for him they can't be too upset. If Russia is to ever get out of the rut they will have to kick it into high gear, but most citizens are content just as they are, avoiding change.

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A Jewish President for Russia?

MOSCOW: Allegations by nationalists that Vladimir Putin's chosen successor, Dmitry Medvedev, has Jewish roots have brought anti-Semitism to the surface on the margins of Russia's presidential election campaign.

The first deputy prime minister, who is all but assured of victory on Sunday because he has Putin's support, has said he belongs to the Russian Orthodox faith.

But some nationalist groups say his mother's maiden name, Shaposhnikova, is Jewish, and that he is unfit to be president because of this.

Medvedev's campaign staff declined to confirm or deny he has Jewish roots. The Kremlin condemns all forms of anti-Semitism.



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Recent claims among nationalist groups in Russia are that Medvedev, Putin's successor, is Jewish. These claims are based off of the last name of his mother, which makes them not very credible claims. These tactics are the same smearing tactics that we are currently appearing in the US's election. Though the interesting thing is that these claims have not arisen until a week before the election. In the US they would appear much before that. Since Medvedev is the favored successor it will be interesting to see if these allegations hurt his campaign at all.

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Medvedev Ahead in the Polls...Surprise?

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin's anointed successor, Dmitry Medvedev, has the support of 70.4 percent of the voters and will easily win the presidential election next weekend, a poll on Thursday showed.

Strongly backed by both the Kremlin and state-controlled media Medvedev, who is first deputy prime minister, leads his nearest challenger by a healthy margin, pollster VTsIOM said.

Nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky is Medvedev's nearest rival with 10.7 percent support, followed by Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov at 10.3 percent, VTsIOM said.

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The election is fast approaching in Russia and as early indications showed Dmitry Medvedev is a shoe in. Seventy percent in polls is a large margin over the next closest competitor with only ten percent. The high percentage of support is an example of the power that Putin has over the country by suggesting who the next leader be. For example if President Bush were to come out and say that he supported McCain for the next president, would McCain suddenly be in the lead with 70%? That would most likely not be the case. Because of Putin's pull we must ask ourselves is it because of a high legitimacy of the government or is it out of pure fear?

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Masonic Conspiracy...in Russia...?

Perhaps nothing in Russia can whip up public hysteria like the notion of a Masonic conspiracy to take over the country. The word "democrat" has also become a widely pejorative term, and long hair on men is certainly a no-no for much of the Russian public.

Now meet Andrei Bogdanov, the presidential candidate with long, curly hair who heads up the country's largest Masonic lodge as well as the Democratic Party of Russia.

At 38, Bogdanov is Russia's youngest-ever presidential candidate, and he is running a long-shot campaign in the March 2 election that First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, President Vladimir Putin's preferred candidate, is all but guaranteed to win.

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Now a Masonic conspiracy may be a long shot, but a democrat not favored by Putin winning the election is just as long a shot. Although Medvedev is pretty much guaranteed to win, there are more than one candidates running. Bogdanov if elected would be a large change for Russia, from the long hair to the fact that he would be the youngest president ever. This article points out some things that might help us realize why the Russian people listen to Putin so obediently.

For example who likes change? Most of society is opposed to change and unless society is ready to overthrow the government they don't like change either. When Putin selects someone to proceed him the citizens feel that this would be the least amount of change for them, making Medvedev the ideal candidate and Bogdanov a change society might not be willing to take.

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No Britain Monitors

The Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe refused to monitor presidential elections in Russia which are set to take place on March 2. The letter sent to Russia’s parliament (the State Duma) said that the organization had been forced to decline Moscow’s invitation to observe the elections of the Russian president.

"We made every effort in good faith to deploy our mission, even under the conditions imposed by the Russian authorities," Christian Strohal, director of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, said in a statement.

"We have a responsibility to all 56 participating states to fulfill our mandate, and the Russian Federation has created limitations that are not conducive to undertaking election observation in accordance with it."

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This series of problems with monitors and the probation of Kasyanov to run have raised suspicion world wide. What started as a clean election for Russia and all countries happy to see a peaceful exchange of power have turned. These attitudes have changed now that there is a definite question of corruption.

Britain has refused to send monitors to the election. This not only increases the struggles between Russia and Britain, but it also shows that Russia is not willing to cooperate with western countries. With the lack of monitors, the election is increasingly questionable and now Russia can pretty much swing the election however they want.

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Only One Real Choice

The only significant challenger of Dmitry Medvedev former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov who has a little chance to win the March, 2. elections was not allowed to the ballot, the AP reports. That could be a great chance for Kremlin critics to call elections unfair and undemocratic

But Nikolai Konkin, secretary of the Central Elections Commission, said a check of the signatures found more than 80,000 to be invalid. In Russia presidential aspirants not affiliated with political parties must submit 2 million signatures supporting their bid to get on the ballot. Kasyanov's campaign said it turned in 2,067,000 signatures.

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This article shows that the elections are already showing a hint of scandal. It seems as though no matter what, no one, but Medvedev will have a fighting chance in this election. Even though Kasyanov went through the trouble of getting the unheard of 2,000,000 signitures , the government still shot him down and he is unable to run. This was the only challenger that could compete with Medvedev. So it is clear now that the person the people and the government wants is Medvedev. However, if you wanted another choice for president, well good luck.

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Medvedev's Goals

Mr Medvedev, a first deputy prime minister, told lawyers it was "necessary to give state employees more thorough and better legal training". President Vladimir Putin has named Mr Medvedev as his preferred successor. The election will be held on 2 March.

Mr Medvedev has refused to take part in live TV debates with rival candidates. The BBC's Russia analyst Steven Eke says a powerful public relations machine has been set in motion to groom Mr Medvedev as the nation's next leader. He is also chairman of the state energy giant Gazprom.

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With Medvedev now exceeding Putin with the people, he has announced some of his goals. He has lead on that their is no tension between Russia and the West. He has also insisted all of the political figures in Russia should get more training, and he is pushing for a huge leap of modernization. With Medvedev refusing to participate in debates, it seems he believes he is higher than all the other candidates.
Also since he is trying to modernize and keep much of Russia's plans secret, Russia may very well become a super power once more. The soviet Union only remained a super power because of its secrecy, and it seems that Medvedev would like to return to this state of secrecy and supremacy.

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Out with the Old, In with the New

Vladimir Putin’s framed photos have been put up on sale
in Russia. Prices on Putin’s framed photos have been cut due to forthcoming presidential election in the nation.

Putin’s persona, the Vladimir Putin brand, goes out of
fashion slowly but surely. Russians are developing a new political addiction – Dmitry Medvedev, Putin’s protégé, his official successor. The propaganda machine has been taking great efforts to promote the new brand across Russia. The new brand, Dmitry Medvedev, has thus been outshining his predecessor – Putin.

It is worthy of note that political factors are intertwined with economic ones. Germany’s Die Welt wrote, for example, that the production of vodka under trademark Putinka has been declining in Russia. Until recently, the brand has been brining the profit of 330 million euros a year.

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Russia is now pushing Putin out and getting ready for Medvedev. Prices have dropped with everything that has to do with Putin and they are being replaced by Medvedev. There is no doubt that Russia will be just as supportive of thier new president as the old. But this raises the question, will Russia lose focus of Putin and soely focus on Medvedev? Will they pay any attention to Putin as Prime Minister? But more importantly will Putin allow himself to drift out of popularity, or will he struggle to stay in the spotlight? Only time will tell if he will go peacefully or if he will try to keep the people. The people may not listen to him as much as he had wanted.

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Dimitri is pretty much a guarantee

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Dmitry Medvedev, named by Russian President Vladimir Putin last month as his favoured successor, launched his personal Internet site on Wednesday.

Photographs on the Web site show Medvedev standing behind Putin, leaning in to listen as Putin speaks across a dinner table, walking without a necktie next to Putin and standing alone while petting a bunny rabbit.

Russia votes to replace Putin, constitutionally prohibited from seeking a third term, on March 2. Medvedev leads in all polls by an overwhelming majority and is expected to win outright in the first round.

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From the beginning Medvedev has been a favorite for the successor to Putin and this trend seems to be continuing. From this we can see the power that Putin holds over his people. By simply telling them Dimitri is the man for the job, they agree. From our point of view we might see Putin as restricting his people’s rights and maybe even oppressive, but in the eyes of the Russian people Putin is a god. So is it better to respect your leader and possibly live where your rights are abridged, or is it better to live where you are free but not respect your leader?

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Russia Limits Election Monitors

Four hundred observers will be able to monitor the vote, election commission head Vladimir Churov announced. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, or OSCE, will be restricted to just 70 observers.

The OSCE (the largest European monitoring group) sent almost 400 observers last time. The issue of foreign observers has become a source of friction between Russia and the West after Russian authorities cut the numbers right down for the parliamentary election last month.

This, along with delays to visas and restrictions on what could be said publicly about the conduct of the election, led the OSCE to abandon its mission to Russia.

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Further cutting of the foriegn monitors will only increase Russia's headbutting with the Western world. Most foriegn monitors wonder if its even worth the hassel this time. There is not really a struggle in the elections. It is clear that Medvedev will win president and Putin will for Prime minister. So why go through all the trouble of Visa's and what not?

Other than the already known outcome, Only 70 foriegn monitors from OSCE can go. With Russia and the western world already exchanging harsh glances, I don't think Russia further limiting foriegn monitors would help relations. However since this is an election already won by Medvedev, then hopefully no serious hostile tension will be established over this.

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Dmitry Medvedev Continues To Grow

Dmitry Medvedev, the person who has already won the reputation of Russia’s next president after Vladimir Putin named him his successor, continues to win more and more popularity in Russia nationwide. The majority of those Russians who will go to the polls on March 2, 2008 say that they will vote for Medvedev.

Medvedev has already become a new political icon for many Russians across the nation. His rating has been growing by leaps and bounds recently. A poll conducted by Russia’s Public Opinion Research Center on January 19-22 among 1,600 Russians, showed that 82 percent of the polled would be ready to vote for Medvedev if election took place next Sunday.

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With Medevedev growing just popular with Russians, there is no other option for a Russian president. Medvedev is closing in on 90% approval throughout Russia. He is becoming the new Putin. This is good for the legitimacy rate in Russia, mabe with a leader that is just as popular, Russia may get its foot back into the world scope. The elections are growing even closer, Medvedev will definantly win. The power will transition smoothly and Russia may become even more stable.

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Ex-Prime Minister Disqualified from Presidential Race

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's Central Election Commission said on Thursday it had grounds to disqualify former prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov from running as an independent in a March presidential election, news agencies reported.

Kasyanov was Putin's first prime minister but became a Kremlin critic after losing his job in 2004.

"The number of valid signatures (in support of Kasyanov) is less than two million, which is grounds for refusing the candidate's registration for the post of Russian president," said Commission secretary Nikolai Konkin, according to TASS news agency.

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All independent candidates who want to run as candidates for the March 2 election must provide at least two million signatures in support of their bid. No more than 50,000 names may come from any one of Russia's 85 regions.

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From this article we can learn more about the requirements for getting a political office in Russia. Most people would find it a hard task to get over two million signatures with limited numbers per regions. This can almost be seen as a way Russia keeps new people from getting into power. This control will keep drastic changes from happening, and this has probably also helped Putin maintain his position.

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Putin's Protege

The complete list of candidacies running for the position of the Russian president will finally be exposed before the end of this month. Experts say that neither former prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov nor the leader of the Democratic Party of Russia, Andrei Bogdanov, will pass the registration. According to experts’ estimates, candidacies of only three parliamentary parties will fight for votes in March of 2008.

Putin’s protege, Dmitry Medvedev, who has already earned the reputation of Russia’s next president, already started to perform some of his would-be functions. Following Putin’s example, Medvedev attended a church on Christmas night for a standing service on December 7.

Candidates from three parliamentary parties were registered at the end of 2007. Two independent nominees, Mikhail Kasyanov and Andrei Bogdanov, launched their campaigns to collect two million signatures in their own support. The signatures will have to be submitted to the Central Election Commission not later than January 16, where they will be checked during the following ten days.

Andrei Bogdanov’s pre-election campaign experiences a shortage of funds. The law stipulates the maximum of 400 million rubles for election campaigns of presidential candidates. Bogdanov can boast of raising only ten percent of the required amount. A half of this money will be spent to collect signatures, which makes it obvious that Bogdanov will not be able to compete with other runners. “It is just honorable to be a presidential candidate in Russia. It is important to get registered so that our candidate would be mentioned in mass media as a serious politician,” an official spokesman for Andrei Bodganov’s election team said. . . . . . .

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The next election in Russia appears to already be over, with Dmitry Medvedev as president. Since Putin will be leaving office, he has passed the torch to his "political partner" Medvedev. The people have seen Medvedev already taking up sought after role of president by attending gatherings and other social events. No other candidate in Russia even comes close to the lead in poles that Medvedev currently holds . He seems to have the same ideas as Putin, and has the approval of the countries people from his former role of Prime Minister and from working closely with Putin for around 17yrs.

If anyone was hoping for change in Russia due to this election, that chance is very slim. With Putin becoming Prime Minister and Medvedev becoming the new president, everything the two have worked together to accomplish will only move forward.