Experts from ForGO on the eve of the elections named the tasks facing the state

Formation of the state

The modern state, as a guaranteed viable political entity, was created by the current president of Russia, says the report of the FoRGS. At the initial stage, in 2000–2024, reforms were carried out that strengthened the influence of the center on the regions and reduced the subjectivity and resources of local authorities, primarily governors.
“Notable milestones are the granting of the president the right to remove heads of state, their “removal” from the Federation Council, the federalization of internal affairs bodies, as well as the announcement by the Constitutional Court that the republics do not and cannot have any “sovereignties.” It is also necessary to record the creation of the State Council,” the report says. The creation of United Russia in 2001 also played a role, with dozens of governors joining its ranks, which complemented the executive power vertical with the party vertical.
At the next stage, in 2004–2012, elections of regional heads were canceled and a significant rotation of the gubernatorial corps was carried out. At the third stage of transformation in 2012, when the federal leadership achieved effective control over the territories, gubernatorial elections were returned in most regions. The annexation of Crimea in 2014 “has given rise to a national consensus of Russian citizens for the first time in many years,” experts say.
In 2020, amendments to the Constitution were adopted, enshrining the concept of a “unified system of public power,” which, combined with personnel renewal, finally completed the construction of the executive vertical and ensured “the proper level of subordination, efficiency and responsibility.” “Another major achievement was the successful integration of the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions reunited with Russia,” the FoRGO report says.