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Modern Russia’s Political System

David Dessler

· Political System
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Academic David Dessler has taught and researched international relations and international politics for over 40 years. A former professor with the Government Department at the College of William & Mary, David Dessler enjoys traveling abroad to countries such as Russia. Over the past 30 years, the Russian political system has undergone considerable changes.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia ratified its constitution and transformed the nation into what is now the Russian Federation. A president and a prime minister share executive power under the current constitution, with the former as the head of state and the latter as the head of government. The president can serve up to two consecutive six-year terms and appoints the prime minister, who is approved by the legislative branch. In addition to leading civilian ministries and implementing foreign and domestic policies, the prime minister assumes the presidential position if the president becomes incapacitated, resigns, or dies.
Russia’s legislative branch is composed of two chambers: the elected lower house known as the State Duma and the Federation Council, the upper house. The Duma has greater authority to pass or veto laws, and the Federation Council has the ability to impeach the president and determine the use of the country’s armed forces in non-Russian territories.
In early 2020, Russian president Vladimir Putin proposed sweeping changes to Russia’s political system that would weaken the presidency’s power and redistribute it to parliament. This included limiting presidential terms to two in total and shifting responsibility for appointing the prime minister to the Duma.Add paragraph text here.