Nearly half of Russians want Putin to stay on as President after 2024, while one in four worry about ‘Cult of Personality’ - poll
More than a quarter of Russians think President Vladimir Putin has a devoted fanbase within the country’s mass media, a new survey suggests. Despite that, though, almost half of people want him to stay on in the job longer.
On Monday, Moscow’s Levada Center pollster released a tranche of new research findings, having questioned Russians across the country. Those interviewed as part of the annual survey were asked a number of questions around their attitudes towards the Russian president, such as whether they would like to see Putin stay on in the job.
When asked how they feel about the head of state, 21% of the more than 1,6000 people polled said that they were sympathetic towards Putin and a further 8% say they admire him. Around 27% couldn’t say a bad word about him, while a further 9% have nothing good to say about him. Nearly one in six people have no strong feelings either way.
However, a total of 47% of people argued that they would like to see Putin stay on in the presidency after 2024, when his current term is set to expire. 42% said they would not, the highest number since 2013, when 45% opposed the idea of Putin returning as president. However, he was ultimately re-elected with close to 65% of the vote.
Over a quarter of those asked (26%) said that there is a cult of personality behind Putin in Russia, more than at any point in the last ten years. 21% said there is no cult at this moment, but there are prerequisites for its emergence, and 41% said there is no cult nor any signs of one in the future. On this question, a third of 18-24-year-olds (32%) are certain that a Putin personality cult exists and 30% believe one could exist in the future.
In addition to Levada’s recent findings, another survey published by the pollster in October found 46% of people were satisfied with the recent election results that saw Putin’s party, United Russia, winning nearly 50% of the vote.
The Levada Center is registered as a foreign agent by the Russian Ministry of Justice over links to overseas funding.
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