Stop the Untouchables. Justice for Sergei Magnitsky.

Russian Elections Did Not Bring a Surprise–but Now What?

The Foundry

A recent Heritage event analyzed Russia’s presidential election and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency. The election was held in the aftermath of mass protests against Russian leadership’s corruption and disregard for the rule of law.

According to David Kramer, President of Freedom House, Putin already lost in three ways: 1) by losing his claim to legitimacy, apparent from the mass scale of protests as well as a failure to secure a majority in the recent Duma elections; 2) because the fear that allowed Putin to continue his authoritarian policy is diminishing; and 3) by losing his aura of political invincibility. All these factors make Putin dependent on creating a myth of an outside (U.S.) threat to justify his hardline ways. From the December–February mass demonstrations in Russia, however, it is clear that the Russians are tired of the prevailing corruption that Putin allowed to flourish.

According to Vladimir Kara-Murza, Washington bureau chief for RTVi television network, the current protests are even more significant than those in the early 1990s. This is because while in the 1990s Russian people protested against poor economic conditions in the country, today they demand rule of law.