With majority of opposition leaders in prison or abroad, Russians are preparing to vote in a presidential election that is unlikely to bring significant change.
Bryn Rosenfeld is an assistant professor of government at Cornell University and studies post-communist politics and public opinion. She suggests that after the election, we can expect the announcement of an unpopular policy.
Rosenfeld says: “Russia’s presidential election is not so important as what will come after. Putin has often postponed unpopular moves until after elections. Within three months of Russia’s last presidential election, in 2018, the Kremlin announced wildly unpopular pension reform.
“Right now, mobilization is the most unpopular policy on the horizon. The Kremlin’s last partial mobilization in September 2022 sent shock waves through Russian society. Mobilization is the one thing that has shaken Russians’ support for the war. Russians remain overwhelmingly opposed to new mobilization, according to recent polling – which might even underestimate opposition. It is difficult to find any social group that supports it.
“The potential domestic and battlefield implications of another mobilization after the election are the things to watch.”
For interviews contact Abby Shroba Kozlowski, cell: 607-229-2681, ars454@cornell.edu.
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