(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Adults in Russia acknowledge two big influences in the area of politics, according to a poll by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center. 28 per cent of respondents say the opinion of relatives and family members is the most important and authoritative in this topic, while 23 per cent mention the views of their president.

The opinion of close friends, co-workers or fellow students is next on the list of influences with 16 per cent, followed by well-known and respected politicians with 11 per cent, and journalists, commentators and television pundits with five per cent. Three-in-ten respondents say no person’s opinion on politics is important to them.

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 (YR), the Communist Party (KPRF), the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) and the Motherland - National Patriotic Union (MDRT)—received more than seven per cent of the vote.

On Oct. 1, Putin accepted an offer to lead the United Russia list in the election to the State Duma, and called the possibility of becoming prime minister "entirely realistic." Earlier this month, State Duma speaker and YR leader Boris Gryzlov issued a statement, describing the ballot as a "national referendum in support of Vladimir Putin."

On Oct. 19, KPRF leader Gennady Zyuganov criticized Gryzlov, saying, "The election is not a referendum. Such an interpretation violates the constitution. Gryzlov’s article is in fact a manifesto for an authoritarian coup. Only authoritarianism allows a situation when a person has dictatorial powers without holding the top official post."

Polling Data

On the topic of politics, whose opinions are for you the most important and authoritative?
(Up to two answers allowed)

Source: All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center
Methodology: Interviews with 3,000 Russian adults, conducted from Sept. 17 to Sept. 27, 2007. Margin of error is 1.8 per cent.

Archive Search

Over 19,600 Polls
Search the Angus Reid Global Monitor Polls & Research archive.