Government and Politics of Russia

Government Type

federation

Administrative Divisions

49 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics* (respublik, singular - respublika), 10 autonomous okrugs**(avtonomnykh okrugov, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 6 krays*** (krayev, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (singular - gorod)****, and 1 autonomous oblast*****(avtonomnaya oblast'); Adygeya (Maykop)*, Aginskiy Buryatskiy (Aginskoye)**, Altay (Gorno-Altaysk)*, Altayskiy (Barnaul)***, Amurskaya (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'skaya, Astrakhanskaya, Bashkortostan (Ufa)*, Belgorodskaya, Bryanskaya, Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude)*, Chechnya (Groznyy)*, Chelyabinskaya, Chitinskaya, Chukotskiy (Anadyr')**, Chuvashiya (Cheboksary)*, Dagestan (Makhachkala)*, Evenkiyskiy (Tura)**, Ingushetiya (Nazran')*, Irkutskaya, Ivanovskaya, Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik)*, Kaliningradskaya, Kalmykiya (Elista)*, Kaluzhskaya, Kamchatskaya (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk)*, Kareliya (Petrozavodsk)*, Kemerovskaya, Khabarovskiy***, Khakasiya (Abakan)*, Khanty-Mansiyskiy (Khanty-Mansiysk)**, Kirovskaya, Komi (Syktyvkar)*, Koryakskiy (Palana)**, Kostromskaya, Krasnodarskiy***, Krasnoyarskiy***, Kurganskaya, Kurskaya, Leningradskaya, Lipetskaya, Magadanskaya, Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola)*, Mordoviya (Saransk)*, Moskovskaya, Moskva (Moscow)****, Murmanskaya, Nenetskiy (Nar'yan-Mar)**, Nizhegorodskaya, Novgorodskaya, Novosibirskaya, Omskaya, Orenburgskaya, Orlovskaya (Orel), Penzenskaya, Permskaya, Komi-Permyatskiy (Kudymkar)**, Primorskiy (Vladivostok)***, Pskovskaya, Rostovskaya, Ryazanskaya, Sakha (Yakutiya)*, Sakhalinskaya (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samarskaya, Sankt-Peterburg (Saint Petersburg)****, Saratovskaya, Severnaya Osetiya-Alaniya [North Ossetia] (Vladikavkaz)*, Smolenskaya, Stavropol'skiy***, Sverdlovskaya (Yekaterinburg), Tambovskaya, Tatarstan (Kazan')*, Taymyrskiy (Dudinka)**, Tomskaya, Tul'skaya, Tverskaya, Tyumenskaya, Tyva (Kyzyl)*, Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)*, Ul'yanovskaya, Ust'-Ordynskiy Buryatskiy (Ust'-Ordynskiy)**, Vladimirskaya, Volgogradskaya, Vologodskaya, Voronezhskaya, Yamalo-Nenetskiy (Salekhard)**, Yaroslavskaya, Yevreyskaya*****; note - when using a place name with an adjectival ending 'skaya' or 'skiy,' the word Oblast' or Avonomnyy Okrug or Kray should be added to the place name

Legal System

based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Citizenship

citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Russia dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 3-5 years

Executive Branch

chief of state: President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting president 31 December 1999 to 7 May 2000; president 7 May 2000 to 7 May 2008; prime minister 8 May 2008 to 7 May 2012; president since 7 May 2012) head of government: Premier (Prime Minister) Mikhail Vladimirovich MISHUSTIN (since 16 January 2020); First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Valentinovich MANTUROV (since 28 February 2024); Deputy Prime Ministers Tatyana Alekseyevna GOLIKOVA, Aleksandr Valeryevich NOVAK, Marat Shakirzyanovich KHUSNULLIN, Dmitriy Nikolayevich CHERNYSHENKO, Vitaly Gennadyevich SAVELYEV, and others cabinet: The Government, composed of the prime minister, deputy prime ministers, and federal ministers; all are appointed by the president, with the prime minister confirmed by the State Duma note: a Presidential Administration provides staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to the president and plays a significant role in shaping national security and foreign policy elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (term length extended from four years by constitutional amendment in 2008); most recent election held 15-17 March 2024 (next to be held in 2030); there is no vice president — if the president is unable to perform duties due to death, incapacitation, impeachment, or resignation, the prime minister serves as acting president until a new election is held within three months; the prime minister is appointed by the president and confirmed by the State Duma election results: Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN reelected president in the March 2024 election; percent of vote — Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN 87.3%, Nikolay KHARITONOV 4.3%, Vladislav DAVANKOV 3.9%, Leonid SLUTSKY 3.2%

Legislative Branch

Bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (170 seats; members appointed by the executive and legislative branches of each of Russia's 85 federal subjects, including oblasts, krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg; life senators may also be appointed by the President, up to 30 in total; members serve terms concurrent with those of the appointing regional officials) and the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats; members elected by a mixed system combining proportional representation from party lists and single-member district contests; parties must clear a 5% vote threshold to receive proportional seats; members serve five-year terms). Elections: State Duma - last held 17-19 September 2021 (next to be held in September 2026). Election results: State Duma - percent of vote received by parties clearing the 5% threshold - United Russia 49.8%, Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) 18.9%, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) 7.6%, A Just Russia - For Truth 7.5%, New People 5.3%; seats by party - United Russia 324, CPRF 57, LDPR 21, A Just Russia - For Truth 27, New People 13, other 8.

Judicial Branch

Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Supreme Arbitration Court; judges for all courts are appointed for life by the Federation Council on the recommendation of the president

Political Parties

Communist Party of the Russian Federation or CPRF [Gennadiy Andreyevich ZYUGANOV]; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR [Vladimir Volfovich ZHIRINOVSKIY]; Motherland Bloc (Rodina) [Dmitriy ROGOZIN]; People's Party [Gennady RAIKOV]; Union of Right Forces or SPS [Nikita BELYKH]; United Russia [Boris Vyacheslavovich GRYZLOV]; Yabloko Party [Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY]

Head of State

President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting president 31 December 1999 to 7 May 2000

Head of Government

Premier (Prime Minister) Mikhail Vladimirovich MISHUSTIN

Cabinet

Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of the premier and his deputies, ministers, and selected other individuals; all are appointed by the president

Elections

State Duma - last held 17-19 September 2021 (next to be held in September 2026).

Election Results

State Duma - percent of vote received by parties clearing the 5% threshold - United Russia 49.8%, Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) 18.9%, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) 7.6%, A Just Russia - For Truth 7.5%, New People 5.3%; seats by party - United Russia 324, CPRF 57, LDPR 21, A Just Russia - For Truth 27, New People 13, other 8. These figures reflect the September 2021 State Duma elections, in which United Russia retained its dominant majority despite a notable decline from its previous result. The elections were widely criticized by international observers and opposition groups for irregularities, voter intimidation, and the exclusion of genuine opposition candidates. The 2024 Russian presidential election resulted in Vladimir Putin securing another six-year term with an officially reported 87.3% of the vote, the highest share of his political career, though the vote was conducted without credible independent oversight and took place amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Constitution

adopted 12 December 1993

Independence

24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National Holiday

Russia Day, 12 June (1990)

International Organization Participation

APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC, CBSS, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, G- 8, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer), ZC

Diplomatic Representation in the U.S.

chief of mission: Ambassador Yuriy Viktorovich USHAKOV chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-5700, 5701, 5704, 5708 FAX: [1] (202) 298-5735 consulate(s) general: Houston, New York, San Francisco, Seattle

U.S. Diplomatic Representation

chief of mission: Ambassador William J. BURNS embassy: Bolshoy Devyatinskiy Pereulok No. 8, 121099 Moscow mailing address: PSC-77, APO AE 09721 telephone: [7] (095) 728-5000 FAX: [7] (095) 728-5090 consulate(s) general: Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg

Capital City

Moscow

Location

55 45 N, 37 36 E

Time Difference

UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) time zone note: Russia has 11 time zones, the largest number of contiguous time zones of any country in the world; in 2014, two time zones were added and DST dropped

History

named after the Moskva River; the origin of the river's name is obscure but may derive from the appellation "Mustajoki" given to the river by the Finno-Ugric people who originally inhabited the area and whose meaning may have been "dark" or "turbid"

St. Petersburg 15 Ulitsa Furshtadtskaya, St. Petersburg 191028 Tel: (7) (812) 331-2600 Fax: (7) (812) 331-2646 After-hours emergencies: (7) (812) 331-2600 Email: StPetersburgACS@state.gov Vladivostok 32 Ulitsa Pushkinskaya, Vladivostok 690001 Tel: (7) (4232) 30-00-70 Fax: (7) (4232) 30-00-91 After-hours emergencies: (7) (4232) 71 00 67 Email: vladcons@state.gov Yekaterinburg Ulitsa Gogolya 15a, 4th floor, Yekaterinburg 620151 Tel: (7) (343) 379-3001 Fax: (7) (343) 379-4515 After-hours emergencies: (7) 8 902 84 16653 Email: consulyekat@state.gov

Military Branches

Ground Troops (Sukhoputnyye Voyskia, SV), Navy (Voyenno-Morskoy Flot, VMF), Air Forces (Voyenno-Vozdushniye Sily, VVS); Airborne Troops (Vozdushno-Desantnyye Voyska, VDV), Missile Troops of Strategic Purpose (Raketnyye Voyska Strategicheskogo Naznacheniya, RVSN) referred to commonly as Strategic Rocket Forces, and Aerospace Defense Troops (Voyska Vozdushno-Kosmicheskoy Oborony or Voyska VKO) are independent "combat arms," not subordinate to any of the three branches; Russian Ground Troops include the following combat arms: motorized-rifle troops, tank troops, missile and artillery troops, air defense of the Ground Troops

Service Age and Obligation

18-27 years of age for compulsory or voluntary military service; males are registered for the draft at 17 years of age; service obligation is 1 year (conscripts can only be sent to combat zones after 6 months of training); reserve obligation for non-officers to age 50; enrollment in military schools from the age of 16, cadets classified as members of the armed forces note: the chief of the General Staff Mobilization Directorate announced in May 2013 that for health reasons, only 65% of draftees called up during the spring 2013 draft campaign were fit for military service, and over 12% of these were sent for an additional medical examination (by way of comparison, 69.9% in 2012 and 57.7% in 2011 were deemed fit for military service); approximately 50% of draft-age Russian males receive some type of legal deferment each draft cycle