This article has been translated into English from Russian by Maia Otarashvili, Deputy Director of the Eurasia Program at FPRI.
On March 18, a significant number of Russian voters will go to the polls with mixed feelings. On the one hand, they want to vote for Putin—at least out of habit—but they are not very happy with the idea that Putin’s reelection means nothing will change in their lives for the subsequent six years. On the other hand, they are afraid to vote against Putin because they think that without him everything will come crashing down in Russia.
Formally, the president’s ratings …read more