Russia Votes: Can Putin Survive? In conjuction with openDemocracy

For many years, under the presidencies of Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin, Russians adopted a consciously passive attitude to politics.

The authorities took full advantage of this democratic vacuum: nepotism and corruption flourished, control over mainstream media was reinstated and human rights were undermined. Yet rising profits from oil and gas exports delivered unprecedented standards of living, political stability and a social peace of sorts.

Today, that peace is at an end. Vladimir Putin, who assumed a smooth return to the Kremlin, is now fighting for his political future. Russia’s new well-educated, well-travelled and well-connected middle class seems to have turned against him. Mass rallies have united opposition sentiment, and not even sub-zero temperatures have managed to stall the momentum of the protests. Slogans such as ‘Russia without Putin’ and ‘party of swindlers and thieves’ have slipped into common usage (even by children). Just a few days before the presidential election, openDemocracy Russia and the Russia Foundation are bringing a special panel of experts and activists directly from Russia to help answer the question of where Russia is heading.

Can the protest movement bring about lasting political change? Is the Kremlin ready or able to embark on a path of democratic modernisation? Will the Putin regime survive its most serious challenge? To help us answer these questions we are pleased to host three of Russia’s leading independent commentators and activists.In the aftermath of the disputed Duma elections and ensuing unrest, the Russia Foundation and openDemocracy are hosting a roundtable discussion with leading Russian experts on the March 4th Presidential elections.

Speakers include:

• Artemy Troitsky – A celebrated activist, cultural critic, university lecturer and journalist. He is one of the most recognisable faces of the Russian protest movement.
• Mikhail Zygar – Editor-in-chief of Rain TV, Russia's most independent TV station and at the forefront of the opposition movement. He was formerly deputy editor-in-chief of Russian Newsweek and correspondent of the highly regarded Kommersant daily newspaper
• Maxim Trudolyubov – A prominent author, journalist, political analyst, one of the founding editors of Vedomosti (sister publication of the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal), Nieman Fellow at Harvard University (2010-2011)