The Political Economy of Russian Gubernatorial Election and Appointment

Political and economic outcomes depend, in part, on the quality of the officials making policy. Some argue that free elections are the best method for selecting competent officials. Others argue that elections lead to the selection of amateurs and demagogues. We use original data on the biographies of Russian regional governors to examine the backgrounds of elected and appointed governors. Elected governors are more likely to be locals. Appointed governors are more likely to be federal bureaucrats or hold a graduate degree. We conclude the paper by speculating on other possible explanations for variation in governor background.     

Generational Differences in Russian Attitudes towards Democracy and the Economy

The purpose of this article is to explore whether there is evidence of generational differences in Russian attitudes towards democracy. Are the attitudes, values and beliefs of those who came of age politically after the fall of the Soviet Union significantly different from those who did so in the Soviet period? The main finding is that the post-Soviet generation of Russians is generally more supportive of democratic values and institutions and a free market economy than the generations which came of age politically during the Soviet years. Such a result is not surprising. However, while support was found to be the case generally, the differences appear much more strongly for economic reforms than for political ones. In trying to explain why this should be, the authors argue that instrumentalist rather than culturalist considerations are paramount. Put another way, the current generation appears to be less interested in politics than in getting ahead in the world. If these differences are generational and not simply a function of aging, in the future this generation may be less interested in the public good than in their own.     

俄罗斯知识分子的命运

这里发表的译文选自苏联新西伯利亚"科学"出版社1990年出版的布哈林文集<社会主义之路>,是尼·伊·布哈林在1925年做的一次关于知识分子问题的演讲.正文由山东大学政治学与公共管理学院博士研究生黄登学译出,中共中央编译局研究员郑异凡先生做了校订并补译了注释.讲演做于近70年前,今天听来却并无辽远之感.听得出,我们今天议论纷纷的诸如知识劳动者阶层的兴起、知识经济等当代资本主义发展的新趋势,讲演者在近70年前就做出了一定程度的预言,这不能不使人感佩这位杰出的马克思主义理论家的远见卓识.当然,对布哈林本人及苏联社会主义模式的命运感兴趣的读者可能另有感触:演讲词中关于创作自由、思想自由、普选权等问题的观点与讲演者本人及其为之奋斗的体制的结局之间可能有着某种关联.历史的积淀而使讲词蕴涵之富,恐远非讲演者本人当年所能想像.     

The Political Resurrection of Russian Governors

Elections for all 83 Russian governors were reinstated in Russia in 2012, seven years after they had been suspended. The democratic reform coincided with renewed political activism in Russia since December 2011, but the reform was as much a belated recognition of the shortcomings and failures from appointing Russian governors. Pragmatic necessity and not democratic conversion was the determining factor. Based on the first elections in October 2012, the reform will have only a limited effect over the next few years on democratic change in Russia, at most placating liberal and regional demands while consolidating personal rule under Putin.