Russian President Vladimir Putin is inching closer to seizing president-for-life status, despite a lower approval rating in recent months and coronavirus-related challenges to his carefully crafted image as a 21st century czar.
Mr. Putin, who has worked behind-the-scenes to enact sweeping constitutional changes that would allow him to stay in power for another 16 years, went public Sunday with his intention to remain in office after his term ends.
Russian news agencies quoted him as saying in an interview that he is considering running for a new term if voters approve the constitutional changes he has been pushing since January.
Reuters noted that Russia will hold a vote from June 25 to July 1 on the proposed changes, including an amendment that would allow Mr. Putin to seek two more six-year terms as president when his current mandate ends in 2024.
Mr. Putin is 67 and has held power in Moscow since 1999. If the changes he’s pushing for are adopted, the road may be paved for him to remain in office until 2036, well into his 80s.
Critics claim the upcoming vote on the changes could be rigged and assert the situation amounts to an authoritarian power grab.
In a sign pre-orchestrated restructuring was in the works last January, several top Russian officials — including Mr. Putin’s No. 2, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev — submitted resignations abruptly after Mr. Putin proposed the constitutional changes in his state of the nation address.
He called for shifting authority to Russia’s parliament in a manner that would give it the authority to create a future leadership position for him.
During more recent months, it had appeared that momentum behind Mr. Putin’s push for the changes was waning. He had suddenly taken on an uncharacteristically low profile during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The rapid spread of the coronavirus had forced the Russian leader to postpone what had originally been scheduled to be an April vote on the constitutional changes. He also had to delay a massive, patriotic May 9 Victory Day parade marking the 75th anniversary of the country’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
Then there were indications last month that Mr. Putin’s approval ratings were down. Polling by Moscow’s independent Levada Center showed him at roughly 60% approval, a two-decade low in contrast to the astounding 84% approval in 2014 after Moscow had annexed Crimea and backed pro-Russia separatist forces in Ukraine.
Mr. Putin appears bent on weathering the current storm. His office scoffed at the polling numbers in early May, with Russia’s Tass news agency citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying “we are not inclined to entirely trust the results of these polls.”
On Sunday, Mr. Putin suggested with characteristic nonchalance that he would be open to the idea of pursuing more time as president.
“I do not rule out the possibility of running for office, if this [option] comes up in the constitution, we’ll see,” he said Sunday in an interview with state TV that was shown in Russia’s far east before airing in western Russia, according to Reuters.
Tass cited Mr. Putin as saying he has “not made any decision so far,” while also cautioning others in the Russian government against searching for a successor to him for the time being.
“They need to work rather than search for successors,” Mr. Putin said.
“You know, I’ll say absolutely frankly now: if this does not happen [passing a respective constitutional amendment] then in some two years, I know this from my own experience, instead of a normal rhythmical work at many levels of power they will start searching for potential successors,” he said.
• Guy Taylor can be reached at gtaylor@washingtontimes.com.
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