Commentary
Nikolay Petrov
{
"authors": [
"Nikolay Petrov"
],
"type": "legacyinthemedia",
"centerAffiliationAll": "",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center",
"programAffiliation": "",
"programs": [],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"Caucasus",
"Russia"
],
"topics": [
"Political Reform",
"Democracy"
]
}
Source: Getty
In The Media
A Russian Federation Without Federalism
Federal and regional authorities in Russia are abusing new amendments to the federal law on local government to centralize power and dismantle whatever still remains of the separation of powers.
Published on Aug 4, 2009
Source: The Moscow Times
Chirkunov justified his decision based on the “inactivity” of Vostrikov and his administration in providing for the city’s vital needs. Specifically, local utilities companies did not pay their energy bills, leaving the city without hot water for three straight months.
A majority vote by the City Duma deputies supported the governor’s initiative and ousted the mayor. It should be noted that Vostrikov has served as mayor about as long as Chirkunov has been governor of the region. One interesting aspect of this story is that when Vostrikov was re-elected to his post last fall, he beat out the United Russia candidate. It is also worth noting that regional officials consider the Chaikovsky area to be second only to Perm for its growth potential.
According to journalists, the newly appointed governor of Murmansk, Dmitry Dmitriyenko, wants to follow Chirkunov’s example. Dmitriyenko has differences with Mikhail Antropov, the Communist mayor of one of the region’s key cities, Apatity. Antropov also beat out the United Russia candidate. Criminal charges are already being prepared against Antropov, who has also been accused of making inadequate preparations for the coming winter.
Two mayors had already been removed using the new law — in Suzdal (Vladimir region) and in Ozersk (Chelyabinsk region) — but in both those cases it was City Duma deputies, and not governors, who initiated the process. Interestingly, the Ozersk mayor contested the decision in court and was reinstated, but City Duma deputies are once again working to have him removed.
In direct violation of the article on federalism in the Constitution, the new amendments effectively place elected local governments within the federal power vertical. The new arrangement makes it easier to oust mayors for political motives or simply to carry out a personal vendetta. By invoking this law, the authorities are not so much creating a new trend as strengthening an existing one. According to the Public Chamber, every three days last year a mayor was fired somewhere in Russia or criminal charges were filed against one. Mayors are especially vulnerable during an economic crisis because the budgets of most municipalities are running deep deficits and are dependent on subsidies from the regional budget.
But the main problem is that under the pretext of responding to the crisis and creating a more effective system of government, we are witnessing the dismantling of whatever still remains of the separation of powers. In their place, elements of “emergency rule” and a highly centralized authority have emerged at all levels. This cannot help but have a negative effect on the quality of the decisions made by the country’s leaders at both the federal and regional levels.
This comment first appeared in The Moscow Times
About the Author
Nikolay Petrov
Former Scholar-in-Residence, Society and Regions Program, Moscow Center
Nikolay Petrov was the chair of the Carnegie Moscow Center’s Society and Regions Program. Until 2006, he also worked at the Institute of Geography at the Russian Academy of Sciences, where he started to work in 1982.
- Moscow Elections: Winners and Losers
- September 8 Election As a New Phase of the Society and Authorities' CoevolutionCommentary
Nikolay Petrov
Recent Work
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Europe
- Russia’s Imperial Retreat Is Europe’s Strategic OpportunityCommentary
The war in Ukraine is costing Russia its leverage overseas. Across the South Caucasus and Middle East, this presents an opportunity for Europe to pick up the pieces and claim its own sphere of influence.
William Dixon, Maksym Beznosiuk
- Is the Radical-Right Threat Existential or Overstated?Commentary
Amid increased polarization and the influence of disinformation, radical-right parties are once again gaining traction across Europe. With landmark elections on the horizon in several countries, are the EU’s geostrategic vision and fundamental values under existential threat?
Catherine Fieschi, Cas Mudde
- Taking the Pulse: Is France’s New Nuclear Doctrine Ambitious Enough?Commentary
French President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled his country’s new nuclear doctrine. Are the changes he has made enough to reassure France’s European partners in the current geopolitical context?
Rym Momtaz, ed.
- The EU Needs a Third Way in IranCommentary
European reactions to the war in Iran have lost sight of wider political dynamics. The EU must position itself for the next phase of the crisis without giving up on its principles.
Richard Youngs
- New Approaches to Defending Global Civil SocietyResearch
New thinking is needed on how global civil society can be protected. In an era of major-power rivalry, competitive geopolitics, and security primacy, civil society is in danger of getting squeezed – in some countries, almost entirely out of existence.
Richard Youngs, ed., Elene Panchulidze, ed.
