Russians take to the streets
Russians filled the streets to protest the alleged fraud in the recent parliamentary elections.
Tens of thousands of Russians last week joined in the biggest protest rallies since Vladimir Putin first became president, 12 years ago, to decry alleged fraud in the recent parliamentary elections. Many shouted, “Putin is a thief,” while others chanted, “We are the 143 percent,” a reference to the obviously fraudulent official vote tally in the Rostov district. Hundreds of people across the country were arrested at protests, which Putin blamed the U.S. for instigating. In an unprecedented concession to public opinion, the ruling United Russia party’s top official, Boris Gryzlov, resigned this week as the State Duma speaker. Still, officials flatly rejected opposition calls for new elections and announced that the new Duma would be seated next week.
Even Russia’s docile press is turning on Putin, said Michael Schwirtz in The New York Times. For years, newspapers have been allowed to criticize the Kremlin as long as they didn’t attack Putin directly. This week, though, Kommersant Vlast printed a photo of a ballot on which someone had scribbled “Putin is a d---.” The sarcastic caption read, “A correctly marked ballot that was ruled invalid.” The editor was promptly fired, but the issue was already on the newsstands.
All very bracing, but it won’t change much, said Robert A. Saunders in Newsday. Putin still controls all the levers of power. Now he realizes “that he has violated the social contract with Russia’s middle class,” so he will appease them with the appearance of a genuine political contest for next March’s presidential elections. Cue the “pseudo-candidacy” of Mikhail Prokhorov, the billionaire metals tycoon who announced this week that he would run against Putin. (See Best columns in Business) He will “lend the election an air of legitimacy.” But make no mistake. Putin’s victory next March is still “just as assured as it was a few weeks ago.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
So what? asked Niall Ferguson in TheDailyBeast.com. It’s a shame for Russians, of course, who have no hope of democracy and whose “public life remains horribly, and perhaps incurably, deformed by 70 years of communist rule.” But with its dwindling population and low GDP, Russia is no longer a global player. These days, it “looks increasingly like Nigeria with snow”—just another “messed-up petro-kleptocracy.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Scientists want to fight malaria by poisoning mosquitoes with human blood
Under the radar Drugging the bugs
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sudoku medium: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published