(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Two-thirds of people in Russia would reject a bid by Vladimir Putin to remain in power indefinitely, according to a poll by the Yury Levada Analytical Center. 65 per cent of respondents oppose allowing Putin to be president for life.

However, 53 per cent of respondents are in favour of allowing Putin to serve three or four consecutive terms instead of the two consecutive terms allowed by the current Constitution.

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."

On Oct. 1, Putin accepted an offer to lead the United Russia (YR) list in the election to the State Duma—scheduled for Dec. 2—and called the possibility of becoming prime minister "entirely realistic."

The next presidential election is tentatively scheduled for March 2008. In Russia, the president is elected to a four-year term by popular vote. 55 per cent of respondents would be in favour of extending the presidential term to seven years, while 34 per cent would reject this measure.

On Oct. 31, the government warned the international community to "abstain from interfering" with the upcoming legislative election, as it announced it would only allow 70 international observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to monitor the process. In the 2003 State Duma election, the OSCE sent 400 observers to Russia.

Kremlin deputy spokesman Dmitry Peskov defended the decision, saying, "No country will accept any attempts from abroad to try to influence (the election). It’s a matter of sovereignty of the country."

Polling Data

Do you support or oppose extending the presidential term in Russia from four to seven years?

Do you support or oppose allowing Vladimir Putin to serve three or four consecutive terms instead of the two consecutive terms allowed by the current constitution?

Do you support or oppose allowing Vladimir Putin to be president for life?

Source: Yury Levada Analytical Center
Methodology: Interviews with 1,600 Russian adults, conducted from Oct. 5 to Oct. 10, 2007. No margin of error was provided.

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