July 14, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - United Russia (YR) is still the dominant force in the country, according to a poll by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center. 50 per cent of respondents would vote for the pro-Kremlin party in the next election to the State Duma, up two points in a week.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - United Russia (YR) is still the dominant force in the country, according to a poll by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center. 50 per cent of respondents would vote for the pro-Kremlin party in the next election to the State Duma, up two points in a week.

The Communist Party (KPRF) is second with eight per cent, followed by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) with six per cent, and A Just Russia with five per cent.

Vladimir Putin was elected to a second term as president in March 2004 with 71.31 per cent of all cast ballots. In April 2005, Putin ruled out seeking a new mandate, saying, "I will not change the constitution and in line with the constitution, you cannot run for president three times in a row." The next presidential election is tentatively scheduled for March 2008.

The next election to the State Duma is scheduled for Dec. 2. For the first time, all 450 lawmakers will be chosen through party-list proportional representation, with a seven per cent threshold. In the 2003 election, only four political parties—United Russia, the KPRF, the LDPR and the Motherland - National Patriotic Union (MDRT)—received more than seven per cent of the vote.

On Jul. 5, writer Eduard Limonov—one of the leaders of the opposition Other Russia coalition—announced that the organization will seek to field 450 candidates in the upcoming election. Other Russia has urged the country's electoral authorities to allow candidates to run even if no formal political party is assembled. Limonov said Other Russia is committed to fairness in the ballot, adding, "We cannot boycott the election."

Limonov established the National Bolshevik Party (NBP) in 1992. While the youth political organization was deemed ultra-nationalist in its early beginnings, it has recently focused on opposing Putin's regime.

Polling Data

Which party would you vote for in the election to the State Duma?

	Jul. 8	Jul. 1	Jun. 24
United Russia (YR)	50%	48%	51%
Communist Party (KPRF)	8%	8%	6%
Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR)	6%	5%	6%
A Just Russia	5%	5%	4%

Source: All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center
Methodology: Interviews with 1,600 Russian adults, conducted on Jul. 7 and Jul. 8, 2007. Margin of error is 3.4 per cent.