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Sub Heading The Political Parties Today: United Russia It is the overwhelming majority party in Russia. It is a party of power (sole stance is to keep party leaders in power and support the leadership). Our Home is Russia had a similar model in the fact it was created in 1995 to support then PM Viktor Chernomyrdin. United Russia was formed in 1999 for the DUMA election where it was then known as Unity. True origins are unknown but signs point to the idea that it was formed by oligarch Boris Berezovsky and the Yeltsin Family. Vladimir Putin caused an increase in support for the party and Unity merged with Fatherland-All Russia to form United Russia. Communist Party of the Russia Federation (CPRF) The best organized party in Russia by far and was the most effective until 2003. Gennady Zyuganov presidential candidate. Came in second in first presidential races. The party paints itself as more social democratic, trying to protect interests of poor rather than a carbon copy of old Stalinist machine. Influence has sharply fallen due to the rise of UR. In 2004, no one from Communist Part wanted to run against Putin. Yabloko Named after its founders (Yavlinsky, Boldyrev, and Lukin), it is considered one of the two reformist parties. Supports democracy as well as the maintenance of the welfare state. Union of Right Forces Support pro-market policies and privatization. NOT right wing. Both URF and Yabloko face uncertain futures. Liberal Democrats Their leader is Vladimir Zhirnovsky. Loose cannon (said he would use nuclear weapons on Japan, blamed West for fall of Soviet Union, known for attacking every reformist leader). Still managed to win 40 seats in 2007. A balanced Seat: The Russia Party System is likely to remain in flux due to the fragmentation of the system and the lack of endurance of any party. Many of the ad campaigns lack the professional ad standards of most Western democracies. Only hope is for United Russia to become dominant centrist party.

The Russian State

Russia has a more fluid kind of power. Although powers and duties of each department are stated in Constitution, power can easily be concentrated in one person regardless of position (i.e. Putin being demoted to Prime Minister but still being most powerful man in Russia).

The Presidency
Directly elected every four years in a two-ballot system. Million signatures to get onto presidential ballot. The candidate who wins the majority of votes becomes President. If no candidate receives a majority of votes, the top two go on and new elections happen. The President is completely independent of the Duma. The Duma can impeach the president but the process is incredibly difficult. The President appoints the Prime Minister and other cabinet positions. The Duma can veto a presidents choice, but if they do this three times, the president can dissolve the Duma and call for new elections. Presidents power is very centralized. President appoints and has Power Ministries (similar to our departments) that run various aspects of policy including defense, foreign affairs, and the interior. These government ministries more or less operate independently. The Prime Minister usually does not have a large role, but Putin has drastically increased the scope of power of the Prime Minister.

The Oligarchs
A decent amount of power in Russia is concentrated in tiny groups of wealthy individuals who influence government to benefit them. Oligarchs were very prominent during Yeltsins rule. Many operate outside of Russia and gain wealth through corruption. Berezovsky, like many others, built trade empire during the end of the USSR. He helped Yeltsin get reelected by controlling media outlets. Putins relationship with the oligarchs led to their loss of power. Berezovsky since 2001 has been in exile.

The Parliament

Was a counterweight to Yeltsin during his reign. Now, even less power and influence. The Parliament is divided into two house. The upper house can really only delay legislature while the lower house of State Duma, holds the real power. The state Duma is elected by proportional representation. Duma is a madhouse (fights, screaming matches, felonies). Cant force executive branch to enforce laws it passes. Cant really impeach anyone either. Under Putin, 90% of Duma is in support of United Russia and passes any legislature the party designs.

The Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy was the old glue of the Soviet System. Currently, it is much less centralized, but it is still given much autonomy in policy execution.

The Judiciary
In Soviet Russia, the judiciary was little more than a cog in the political machine. Now, the judiciary branch actually has some power. A Constitutional Court was established to deal with issues regarding legal principles as well as a Supreme Court that is the final court of appeals. However, most interactions between State and People are still done outside the law and the courts cant necessarily secure and or protect freedoms, rights, and liberties.