Russia has commenced its presidential elections, which are widely seen as a power consolidation move by President Vladimir Putin. The election system, tailored to Putin’s advantage, virtually assures him uninterrupted rule until 2030.

Putin’s Unassailable Position

In the lead-up to the elections, Putin appears to face minimal competition. The few candidates daring to run against him are all Kremlin supporters, displaying a bleak landscape for the Russian electorate. Putin’s grip on the presidency, which is expected to extend until 2030, has never before been challenged by such a limited pool of competitors.

Putin’s unopposed rule is further secured by the introduction of an opaque online voting system, and the absence of international observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The Kremlin’s strategy is for the elections to act as a plebiscite, a massive show of support that will validate Putin’s hardline future policies to his people.

Presidential Contenders

Out of Russia’s 25 permitted parties, only eight have dared to field a candidate. The presidential filter has been unyielding. Just three loyalist parties (the Communist Party, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, and New People) managed to make the cut. Meanwhile, Russia’s largest party, United Russia, has not nominated anyone from its organization but instead backs the “independent” candidate, Vladimir Putin.

Putin’s Power Consolidation

Since the last presidential elections in 2018, Putin has fortified his position in power. With his 2020 constitutional reform, he reset all his accumulated terms since 2000, allowing him to remain in the Kremlin until 2036. The laws enacted this term and the prison cells have kept any candidate considered dangerous to his plans away from the electoral race.

Limited Opposition

The visible heads of the Russian opposition are either in prison, exile, or have died. One of the dissident leaders, Alexei Navalny, suddenly died in prison a month before the elections. His funeral drew tens of thousands of Russians despite the Kremlin’s boycott and the arrests of hundreds of peaceful protesters following his strange death.

Controversial Elections

These elections will mark the second time Russia has held elections – the first presidential – since 1993 without an OSCE observer mission. As in the pseudo-referendums of 2022 for the annexation of occupied Ukrainian territories, the Kremlin will bring its own “international observers,” including some Spanish citizens, to simulate the cleanest elections in the world.

Furthermore, the authorities have implemented the controversial electronic vote in 27 electoral points, most of them problematic areas for Putin’s reelection, including his two cosmopolitan metropolises, Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Conclusion

Putin’s tailor-made elections reveal an authoritarian regime consolidating power and dampening dissent. International community will be closely watching the elections and their aftermath, with implications for Russia’s domestic politics and its relations with the rest of the world.

The outcomes of these elections could shape Russia’s political landscape for the next decade, with Putin at the helm until 2030.