Paul Goble
Staunton, August 16 – In a concession to the idea that it cannot afford to ignore the wishes of the population entirely even if it opposes popular elections of governors, the ruling United Russia Party has decided not to support nominate the deeply unpopular Georgy Boos for a second term in Kaliningrad.
Had it done otherwise and insisted that the incumbent be given another term, Olga Tropkina writes in "Novaya politika” today, the wave of protests that Boos’ policies provoked last winter would likely grow to the point that the powers that be might not be able to control the situation (novopol.ru/-kaliningrad-stal-kamnem-pretknoveniya-dlya-partii-vla-text88684.html).
The party’s decision, Tropkina says, is "a signal event” which casts doubt on "the effectiveness of the existing mechanism of appointing heads of regions in Russia.” But she concedes that it may reflect both Boos’ shortcomings as ...
Igor Tabakov / MT
Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, center, attending a United Russia meeting in Moscow in March 2009.
Russia has 83 regions, but not every regional boss enjoys the same title.
For most, the title is "governor," but for others it might be "president," "mayor," "government chairman" or simply "head."
Life could get a lot simpler — or complicated, depending on whom you ask — after Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov announced last week that he no longer wanted to be known as president and suggested a common title for all regional leaders.
The initiative has rapidly gained steam, with the Kremlin, the Federation Council and other North Caucasus leaders expressing support. But some politicians said regions should be allowed to pick their own titles, and several senior Chechen officials declared that Kadyrov should be known as imam.
"The issue of unifying regional leaders' titles has long been on the political ...
