RTWed, 06 Dec 2017 14:31 UTC
© Ramil Sitdikov / Sputnik
Vladimir Putin has confirmed that he will seek another term in office in next year's presidential election. "Yes, I will run as a candidate for the Russian presidency," Putin said while meeting with workers at the country's historic manufacturer, GAZ (Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod), in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod on Wednesday. The upcoming election
will be the fourth in Putin's political career. He held the office of president for two terms from 2000 to 2008, and served as prime minister from 2008 to 2012. Putin then won a third term as president in 2012.
Vladimir Putin had, until now, refused to give a direct answer regarding his plans for the 2018 race. Earlier, Russian media
reported that he may run as an independent candidate. The Russian president enjoys a high approval rating, with over 82 percent of Russians supporting him according to a poll
conducted by state-run VTSIOM in late September.
The date for next year's election has not been announced yet, but
it is believed that it will take place on March 18 - the anniversary of Crimea's reunification with Russia. Several other people, including an unprecedented number of women, have announced their candidacy. Liberal-Democratic Party head Vladimir
Zhirinovsky, the Communist Party's Gennady Zyuganov, the liberal Yabloko party's Grigory Yavlinsky, journalist and singer-songwriter Ekaterina
Gordon, celebrity and activist Ksenia
Sobchak, and business ombudsman Boris
Titov have all announced their plans to run.
Comment: Putin's approval rating was at
83% in August 2017. Just before he made the announcement, Putin was asked if he would run at a Q&A session for the Russian Volunteer Forum in Moscow on Wednesday afternoon. The event had an audience of 20,000 - mostly youths - from across the country. Here was his response:
It's easy to see why Putin has so much public support. But it's also somewhat strange. Putin is often derided in the West for his "strongman PR image". That's true to a degree, for sure - the guy's a judo master after all. But far more than that, he embodies responsibility, professionalism, self-control, clear thinking. That's the model he sets for youths like those attending the conference above. And in that sense he's kind of like Dr. Jordan B. Peterson. He fills the void for youths who have lacked a real role model in their lives. Not only will it get him re-elected, it actually makes his supporters better people, because he embodies the values that then become the model for his citizens.
See also:
Comment: Putin's approval rating was at 83% in August 2017. Just before he made the announcement, Putin was asked if he would run at a Q&A session for the Russian Volunteer Forum in Moscow on Wednesday afternoon. The event had an audience of 20,000 - mostly youths - from across the country. Here was his response:
It's easy to see why Putin has so much public support. But it's also somewhat strange. Putin is often derided in the West for his "strongman PR image". That's true to a degree, for sure - the guy's a judo master after all. But far more than that, he embodies responsibility, professionalism, self-control, clear thinking. That's the model he sets for youths like those attending the conference above. And in that sense he's kind of like Dr. Jordan B. Peterson. He fills the void for youths who have lacked a real role model in their lives. Not only will it get him re-elected, it actually makes his supporters better people, because he embodies the values that then become the model for his citizens.
See also: