This survey took place between 21 and 24 August 2015 and was conducted throughout all of Russia in both urban and rural settings. The survey was carried out among 800 people over the age of 18 in 134 localities of 46 of the country’s regions. The answer distribution is presented as percentages of the number of participants along with data from previous surveys. The statistical error of these studies does not exceed 4.1%.
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY HAS BEEN VLADIMIR PUTIN’S MAIN ACHIEVEMENT DURING HIS TIME IN POWER? (one answer)
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Mar. 04 |
Mar. 05 |
Mar. 06 |
Mar. 07 |
Mar. 08 |
Jul. 09 |
Jul. 10 |
Feb. 12 |
Apr. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
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| Economic development of the country | 10 | 7 | 10 | 18 | 21 | 17 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 13 |
| Improvement of citizens’ quality of living, increased wages and pensions | 24 | 18 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 22 | 20 | 14 | 11 | 12 |
| Strengthening of Russia’s international positions | 4 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 13 | 10 |
| Increasing military capability and reform of armed forces | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 10 |
| Establishment of order in the country, maintaining a peaceful political environment | 6 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 9 |
| Increased optimism, hope for improvement of the situation in the country in the near future | 13 | 11 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 8 |
| Resolution of the Chechen problem | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 |
| Elimination of the danger of terrorism | <1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Restraining of “oligarchs,” limits to their influence | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| War on corruption, bribery | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Creation of economic and political conditions conducive to the growth of the private sector | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| Cooperation with other CIS nations | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Improvement of Russia’s relations with the West | 6 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| War on crime | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Protection of democracy and citizens’ political freedoms | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 |
| Improvement of interethnic relations in Russia | <1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 | <1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 |
| Strengthening of morals in the country | <1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | <1 | <1 | <1 | <1 | <1 | <1 |
| Other | 1 | <1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| I don’t perceive any accomplishments | 12 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 15 | 8 | 8 |
| It is difficult to say | 4 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 |
Vladimir Putin’s Accomplishments and Failures*
| Accomplishments | Failures | Balance | |
| Increasing military capability and reform of armed forces | 33 | 7 | 26 |
| Establishment of order in the country, maintaining a peaceful political environment | 27 | 6 | 21 |
| Strengthening of Russia’s international positions | 27 | 7 | 21 |
| Solution of the Chechen problem | 24 | 3 | 21 |
| Increased optimism, hope for improvement of the situation in the country in the near future | 24 | 5 | 19 |
| Cooperation with other CIS nations | 18 | 3 | 15 |
| Improvement of citizens’ quality of living, increased wages and pensions | 24 | 15 | 9 |
| Elimination of danger of terrorism | 14 | 5 | 9 |
| Creation of economic and political conditions conducive to the growth of the private sector | 12 | 6 | 6 |
| Economic development of the country | 22 | 17 | 6 |
| War on crime | 9 | 7 | 1 |
| Protection of democracy and citizens’ political freedoms | 4 | 3 | 1 |
| Improvement of interethnic relations in Russia | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Improvement of Russia’s relations with the West | 7 | 9 | -2 |
| Restraining of “oligarchs,” limitations to their influence | 12 | 16 | -4 |
| Strengthening of morals in the country | 5 | 10 | -4 |
| War on corruption, bribery | 14 | 29 | -14 |
| None | 16 | 5 | 11 |
* “Accomplishments” is the value sum for the questions “What would you say has been Vladimir Putin’s main achievement during his time in office?” and “In which other areas has Vladimir Putin been successful?”
“Balance” was calculated in Excel as the difference between “accomplishments” and “failures” with decimal points included. On the website the numbers have been rounded, thus the difference of ± 1% is not an error.
Vladimir Putin’s Accomplishments (dynamic data)**
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Mar. 04 |
Mar. 05 |
Mar. 06 |
Mar. 07 |
Mar. 08 |
Jul. 09 |
Jul. 10 |
Feb. 12 |
Aug. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
|
| Increasing military capability and reform of armed forces | 11 | 13 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 28 | 33 |
| Establishment of order in the country, maintaining a peaceful political environment | 19 | 19 | 19 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 29 | 27 |
| Strengthening of Russia’s international positions | 19 | 22 | 25 | 32 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 30 | 27 |
| Resolution of the Chechen problem | 10 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 20 | 18 | 12 | 16 | 23 | 24 |
| Increased optimism, hope for improvement in the near future | 28 | 21 | 24 | 25 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 19 | 26 | 24 |
| Improvement of citizens’ quality of living, increased wages and pensions | 39 | 29 | 28 | 30 | 36 | 43 | 40 | 29 | 25 | 24 |
| Economic development of the country | 21 | 14 | 15 | 30 | 35 | 31 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 |
| Cooperation with other CIS nations | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 12 | 17 | 18 |
| Elimination of danger of terrorism | 3 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 14 |
| War on corruption, bribery | 14 | 12 | 8 | 14 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 14 |
| Creation of economic and political conditions conducive to the growth of the private sector | 11 | 8 | 7 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 12 |
| Restraining “oligarchs,” limitations to their influence | 18 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| War on crime | 8 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 9 |
| Improvement of Russia’s relations with the West | 21 | 26 | 25 | 28 | 20 | 22 | 29 | 17 | 5 | 7 |
| Improvement of interethnic relations in Russia | 3 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 6 |
| Strengthening of morals in the country | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Protection of democracy and citizens’ political freedoms | 6 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 |
| I don’t perceive any accomplishments | 26 | 26 | 28 | 20 | 10 | 15 | 17 | 30 | 16 | 16 |
| It is difficult to say | 19 | 15 | 19 | 14 | 21 | 19 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 9 |
** The sum of values for the questions “WHAT WOULD YOU SAY HAS BEEN VLADIMIR PUTIN’S MAIN ACHIEVEMENT DURING HIS TIME IN POWER?” and “IN WHICH OTHER AREAS HAS VLADIMIR PUTIN BEEN SUCCESSFUL?”
Vladimir Putin’s Failures (dynamic data)***
|
Mar. 04 |
Mar. 05 |
Mar. 06 |
Mar. 07 |
Mar. 08 |
Jul. 09 |
Jul. 10 |
Feb. 12 |
Aug. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
|
| War on corruption, bribery | 28 | 27 | 28 | 33 | 32 | 35 | 37 | 38 | 28 | 29 |
| Economic development of the country | 18 | 19 | 16 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 11 | 17 |
| Restraining “oligarchs,” limitations to their influence | 19 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 18 | 23 | 24 | 20 | 15 | 16 |
| Improvement of citizens’ quality of living, increased wages and pensions | 21 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 13 | 21 | 15 | 15 |
| Strengthening of morals in the country | 13 | 13 | 16 | 22 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 10 |
| Improvement of Russia’s relations with the West | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 9 |
| War on crime | 25 | 20 | 18 | 23 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 7 |
| Strengthening of Russia’s international positions | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 7 |
| Increasing military capability and reform of armed forces | 6 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 7 |
| Creation of economic and political conditions conducive to the growth of the private sector | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| Establishment of order, maintaining a peaceful political environment | 10 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| Improvement of interethnic relations in Russia | 7 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 6 |
| Increased optimism, hope for improvement in the near future | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| Elimination of danger of terrorism | 24 | 15 | 9 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 5 |
| Resolution of the Chechen problem | 34 | 27 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 5 | 3 |
| Cooperation with other CIS nations | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Protection of democracy and citizens’ political freedoms | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| I don’t perceive any failures | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| It is difficult to say | 10 | 10 | 12 | 17 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 9 | 18 | 10 |
*** Percent distribution for answers to the question “IN WHICH OTHER AREAS HAS VLADIMIR PUTIN BEEN SUCCESSFUL?” (multiple answers)
WHICH SECTION OF THE POPULATION’S INTERESTS, WOULD YOU SAY, ARE REPRESENTED BY VLADIMIR PUTIN? (multiple answers; N=1600)
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Oct. 00 |
Mar. 01 |
Mar. 03 |
Apr. 05 |
Aug. 07 |
Oct. 10 |
Jan. 11 |
Mar. 13 |
Mar. 14 |
Aug. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
|
| “Security forces”, intelligence agency workers, the army, MVD | 54 | 36 | 43 | 38 | 39 | 34 | 31 | 35 | 46 | 39 | 42 |
| “Oligarchs”, bankers, big business | 24 | 18 | 28 | 26 | 18 | 26 | 26 | 36 | 38 | 30 | 31 |
| Government workers, bureaucrats | 12 | 19 | 20 | 23 | 19 | 24 | 24 | 27 | 33 | 24 | 28 |
| “The middle class”: people with an above-average income | 10 | 23 | 26 | 22 | 31 | 27 | 26 | 18 | 23 | 22 | 23 |
| “Directors”: heads of large enterprises | 16 | 16 | 17 | 20 | 13 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 24 | 19 | 24 |
| “Ordinary people“: white-collar employees, manual laborers, agricultural workers | 12 | 18 | 21 | 17 | 24 | 20 | 20 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| Cultural and science elite | 4 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 10 | 13 |
| B. Yeltsin’s former inner circle, “the families” | 25 | 22 | 25 | 16 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 13 |
| Intelligentsia | 5 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 7 |
| “The bottom rung”: the poor, the less fortunate | <1 | <1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | <1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Everyone without exception | 5 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 16 |
| It is difficult to say | 13 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 10 | 15 | 10 |
DID YOU HEAR THAT VLADIMIR PUTIN VISITED A SUNKEN GALLEY IN A SUBMERSIBLE IN CRIMEA?****
| Sept.12 | Aug.15 | |
| Closely followed this story | 7 | 10 |
| Heard a lot about this story | 37 | 29 |
| Heard something, but don’t know the details | 25 | 26 |
| Hearing about it for the first time | 31 | 34 |
WHAT DID YOU FEEL UPON HEARING ABOUT VLADIMIR PUTIN’S DIVE IN A BATHYSCAPHE? (as a percent of those surveyed who heard of the dive)
| Sept.12 | Aug.15 | |
| Respect/liking of Vladimir Putin | 14 | 31 |
| Surprise/confusion | 25 | 16 |
| Displeasure that the head of state is playing games/ doing cheap stunts | 21 | 11 |
| Felt nothing in particular | 29 | 33 |
| It is difficult to say | 11 | 10 |
**** In 2012 this question concerned Vladimir Putin’s flight in a motorized hang glider at the head of a flock of cranes.
WHO, IN YOUR OPINION, DESERVES CREDIT FOR RUSSIA’S ECONOMIC SUCCESS AND THE INCREASED PROSPERITY OF ITS POPULATION? (multiple answers; N=1600)
|
Sept. 01 |
Aug. 03 |
Aug. 05 |
Aug. 07 |
Aug. 09 |
Aug. 11 |
Aug. 12 |
Aug. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
|
| Vladimir Putin | 56 | 57 | 62 | 55 | 52 | 38 | 59 | 81 | 61 |
| The Russian government/ministers | 30 | 20 | 29 | 27 | 12 | 16 | 12 | 15 | 18 |
| Dmitry Medvedev | – | – | – | – | 11 | 30 | 11 | 10 | 12 |
| Governors, local authorities | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| Industry/business | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Others | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| No one | – | – | – | – | 6 | 12 | 13 | 4 | 10 |
| It is difficult to say | 11 | 15 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 13 | 7 | 18 |
WHO IN RUSSIA, IN YOUR OPINION, IS MOST RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COUNTRY’S PROBLEMS AND THE RISE IN THE COST OF LIVING? (multiple answers; N=1600)
|
Sept. 01 |
Aug. 03 |
Aug. 05 |
Aug. 07 |
Aug. 09 |
Aug. 11 |
Aug. 13 |
Aug. 14 |
Aug. 15 |
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| The Russian government/ministers | 39 | 48 | 48 | 48 | 36 | 40 | 36 | 42 | 45 |
| Vladimir Putin | 22 | 18 | 22 | 19 | 17 | 29 | 58 | 65 | 44 |
| Dmitry Medvedev | – | – | – | – | 23 | 41 | 26 | 25 | 29 |
| Governors, local authorities | 12 | 19 | 15 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 19 | 22 | 22 |
| Industry/ business | 15 | 9 | 15 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| Other | 21 | 11 | 19 | 18 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| No one | – | – | – | – | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| It is difficult to say | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 18 | 10 | 11 | 5 | 13 |
Translated by Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (formerly Monterey Institute of International Studies).