Putin Maintains Leadership Grip

One year after President Dmitry Medvedev took office, it is clear that his "tandemocracy" with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin does not work. Furthermore, their modernization efforts have accomplished little if anything at all.

According to a Levada Center survey conducted in April, 76 percent of Russians approve of Putin's work as prime minister, and 67 percent approve of Medvedev's job performance. Putin also holds more than a 10 percent lead over his successor in ratings for overall trust and policies -- 48 percent and 37 percent, respectively. In a hypothetical early election, Putin would earn 28 percent of the vote to Medvedev's 19 percent. Only 2 percent of those questioned perceived the president's actions as representing fundamentally new policies, and 11 percent think that he is gradually shifting his political course. But a full 80 percent of respondents are certain that Medvedev is essentially, or even completely, continuing Putin's course.