Rise of Personalist Rule in Russia
By: Hugo Tai
Apr 11, 2022
This week’s graph reveals the rise of Putin’s personalist rule and the decline of horizontal accountability in Russia. The Person of the Leader indicator increased dramatically after Putin rose to power in 1998-1999. It peaked from 2014 when the Crimea war offered Putin an opportunity to drive his personality cult.
At the same time, judicial and legislative checks on the executive plummeted the courts are now considered as displays and judges “know how to follow orders”. The Russian legislature has been considered rubber stamps for years, and no one voted against the proposed constitutional amendments allowing Putin to extend his term until 2024.Personalist regimes and the lack of horizontal accountability enhance the risk of war. Russia’s current invasion of Ukraine is an example.
