Putin & the Political Parties of Russia
By Aaron C.Z. Arnold
Introduction
Vladimir Putin was first elected as the President of the Russian Federation in 2012 and was reelected in 2018. Over the years, he has become an influential figure in both Russian and international politics.
This article intends to analyze the relations and dynamics between President Putin and the political parties of Russia. This article will answer the following questions: How do the other political parties in Russia view Putin? Do they support him or do they oppose him? If they support him, how do they show their support? If they oppose him, how do they show their opposition?
All-Russian Political Party United Russia
The United Russia Party (UR) is the largest political party in Russia and holds the majority in almost every branch of government in the country. In 2012 Putin ran for President as a member of UR, however, in 2018, Putin elected to run as an independent candidate.
On March 23, 2023, in response to the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing a warrant on President Putin, the Chairman of UR, Dmitry Medvedev, threatened the ICC in a Telegram post by stating “It is quite possible to imagine a hypersonic missile being fired from the North Sea from a Russian ship at The Hague courthouse.”
After Putin announced he would run as an independent candidate for the 2024 Russian Presidential Election, Andrei Turchak, a senior UR party official, stated “More than 3.5 million party members and supporters will actively take part in the election campaign”, referring to Putin’s election campaign. Despite no longer being a member of UR, It would appear that UR remains very supportive of Putin and his policies.
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) is the second-largest political party in Russia. After reading and analyzing letters and articles from the party’s official website, it would appear that CPRF fosters mixed feelings towards Putin and his policies.
In September 2021, in an article titled “CRPF on the election results: Uncontested Elections”, CRPF suggested that Putin and the UR were meddling in Russian elections: “five CPRF candidates…..were excluded from the voting list under false pretext and one of them, presidential ex-candidate Pavel Grudinin who was running against V. Putin, with about 9 million supporters, was groundlessly brought to trial.” In that same article, CPRF added that “After radical amendments to the Russian Constitution last July, the ruling regime has launched continuous attacks aimed at elimination of strong competitors from the ranks of the opposition”, criticizing the changes made to the Russian Constitution that were supported by Putin and UR.
However, in contrast to their previous remarks in an article titled “Sanctions Against Russia…Will Strengthen Russia?” CPRF appeared to show confidence in Putin’s handling of foreign affairs: “Will Putin himself make concessions under pressure from the West? No, he won’t! Russia has too sad an experience of concessions.” CPRF went on to say “the real goal of the United States and its allies is not to stop Russia’s military operation against the Nazi regime in Ukraine, but to overthrow President Putin.” From these quotes and other articles on the party’s official website, it would appear that the CPRF heavily opposes Putin, however, they support his foreign actions and policies; the war in Ukraine and their views on Western nations.
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia
The Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) is another major political party in Russia, however, they are far behind UR and CPRF in terms of membership and support.
In February 2023, LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky met with President Putin to discuss general political affairs. In this meeting, Putin suggested that he and Slutsky speak often and work closely together stating: “We are in touch in general — we meet regularly at different events……I know that your proposals are always specific, practical.”
After being chosen as his party’s nominee for the 2024 Russian Presidential Election, LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky said “I won’t call to vote against Putin. A vote for Slutsky and LDPR is absolutely not a vote against Putin.” due to this it would appear that LDPR views Putin in a positive light.
A Just Russia — For Truth
The A Just Russia — For Truth party (SRZP), also known as Fair Russia, however, they are also quite small compared to the UR and CPRF in terms of membership and support. After reading and analyzing articles from the party’s official website and other news sites, it would appear that SRZP is very supportive of Putin’s policies and actions.
In an article on their official website titled “2024 could mark the beginning of serious changes in Russia’s national and migration policies’’, SRZP expressed their support for Putin by stating: “The A JUST RUSSIA — FOR TRUTH party supports the course of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the field of migration and nationality policy and is ready to propose measures for its implementation”.
In another article titled “The basis of the new Russia will be sovereignty and justice”, SRZP stated, “Head of the party faction in the State Duma Sergei Mironov said that Russian President Vladimir Putin, in his speech at the plenary session of the World Russian People’s Council, formulated the key principles for the development of the Russian state and Russian civilization.”
Furthermore, SRZP is a member of a political alliance in Russia called the All-Russia People’s Front (ONF). This alliance was created by then-Prime Minister of Russia Vladimir Putin with the intention of creating formal relations between UR and other political organizations in Russia.
Other Political Parties
The political parties which were mentioned above are the largest political parties in Russia. Among other political parties existing in Russia, views and stances on Putin differ between individual parties.
For example, the All-Russian Political Party Rodina, led by former UR member Alexei Zhuravelv, is a small political party that is a member of Putin’s alliance, All-Russia People’s Front. In the 2018 Russian Presidential Election, Rodina endorsed Putin.
Another example of a minor party is the Russian United Democratic Party Yabloko (RUDP Yabloko, or Yabloko). Their power and influence is mostly found at the regional and local level. They openly oppose Putin and the war in Ukraine. After UR party member Andrey Gurulyov stated that those who don’t support Putin are “rot” and should be “destroyed”, Yabloko Party Member Boris Vishnevsky filed an investigation request to the Prosecutor General of Russia in order to review the statements made by Gurulyov.
Conclusion
After conducting research on these parties and their political views, it would appear that most of the political parties in Russia support Putin and his policies, with only a select few offering public opposition. The biggest opposition to Putin and the ruling party, UR, is CPRF and Yabloko. However, these parties do not wield enough influence in order to effectively challenge Putin and UR nor do they have enough support.
Many individuals and organizations such as CPRF and other countries have accused the Russian government of meddling in Russian elections. In 2023, A spokesperson for Putin stated “[Presidential elections] don’t even have to be held…..our presidential election is not really democracy. Mr. Putin will be re-elected next year.” The European Parliament has referred to these other parties as “political parties in a managed democracy”, referring to the stronghold of influence and power Putin and his old party, UR, seem to maintain in Russia.
Credits
Writing:
Aaron C.Z. Arnold, Board Member
Editing:
Aaron C.Z. Arnold, Board Member
Laurence Edwards, Board Member
Research:
Aaron C.Z. Arnold, Board Member
January 6, 2023 (1/6/2023)
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