16 February 2024
Why the Russian Constitution Matters
Russia’s failure to become a democracy after the collapse of the Soviet Union is not an inevitable product of its history. On the contrary, it has been shaped by the adoption of a constitutional system of centralised power in the office of the president. Long term democratic reform will require more than just Putin leaving the office of the presidency. Avoiding a system of ‘Putinism without Putin’ will also require a new Russian constitutional foundation that breaks with centralisation and reshapes the later structural chapters of the constitution to balance power between institutions. Continue reading >>
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26 June 2023
Yevgeny Prigozhin and Russia’s Expanding Prerogative State
Over the weekend, the world’s attention was gripped as a well-equipped Russian private military company led by Evgeny Prigozhin seized control of a key Russian city and military hub, and marched on Moscow. Prigozhin’s actions reveal a deeper truth about Putin’s Russia: the absence of formalised, legal mechanisms for peacefully resolving high-level, intra-elite disputes. As the war in Ukraine drags on, what Ernst Fraenkel called the ‘prerogative state’ is expanding. This lawless realm of unchecked public power has no rules or institutions that can settle disputes among the Russian elite; these can only be resolved by Putin himself. Continue reading >>
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20 April 2022
Russian Crown-Presidentialism
Many studying Russia have pointed to Vladimir Putin’s deliberate cultivation of charismatic authority through carefully staged photo ops and messaging campaigns. Yet, Putin’s power also draws on rational-legal authority. Putin draws his authority from detailed, constitutional rules that allow the president to dominate the Russian political system. The surprising importance of rational-legal authority in Putin’s Russia carries a number of important lessons for better understanding Russia and the role of constitutional rules in democratic governance. Continue reading >>
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