January 2026
First of all, one can notice the consolidation of the political institutions of the Russian Federation. In September, elections were held for 11 of the 89 regional legislative assemblies, as well as for the 21 highest official persons (in everyday speech – governors) of the subjects of the federation. In all gubernatorial elections, the candidates who held the office at the beginning of the election defeated their rivals. Representatives of the ruling all-Russian United Russia party won 19 out of 21 gubernatorial elections and won 80.8% of the seats in the regional legislative assemblies. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, the Socialist Political Party “Just Russia”, the “New People” party, the “Rodina” party, and the Pensioners’ Party also won parliamentary seats, while the Russian United Democratic Party “Yabloko” and the “Communists of Russia” party were in the last places. A new trend in the 2025 elections is the growth of remote electronic voting, which included 1.54 million citizens in 24 regions of Russia. The regional elections of 2025 confirmed the stable trust of Russian citizens in the institutions of state power.
The nationalization of Russia’s political elite continues. This process was started in 2013 and aims to ensure the composition of the ruling elite that shows patriotism and loyalty to the existing socio-political system. The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, has repeatedly emphasized that the core of the new political elite should be the participants of the Special Military Operation. At the same time, the elite political figures of the “past time” who showed loyalty to the West, such as Anatoly Borisovich Chubais, Dmitry Nikolayevich Kozak, and others, or were caught in corruption (for example, former governors of Kursk and Tambov regions), are excluded from the ranks. The appointment of Igor Viktorovich Krasnov to the position of President of the Supreme Court, who is expected to increase the efficiency of law enforcement bodies, is also noted.
Sociological data on the level of trust in the state and social institutions. According to the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VCIOM), conducted from December 15 to 21, 2025 (a sample of 1,600 respondents over the age of 18, telephone survey), the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is trusted by 80.8% of respondents, and his work as president is approved by 77.0%; the President of the Government of the Russian Federation, Mihail Mishustin, is trusted by 60.0% of respondents. The second VCIOM survey – on trust in non-statutory institutions, conducted on November 31, 2025 – showed the highest trust in the Russian Orthodox Church (62.1%), the media (44.9%), the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation (35.8%), political parties (35.6%), professional unions (33.8%), while the least trust was expressed in the opposition (25.1%). The main political result of 2025 for Russia was the strengthening of centralized management and the increasing importance of the federal center in solving economic and strategic tasks. At the same time, there is a noticeable concentration of financial resources in key sectors of the economy, the continuation of the policy of import substitution, and the strengthening of foreign policy independence. According to VCIOM data, the majority of Russians (66%) perceive 2025 as a successful year. The basis of such assessments is the general feeling of political stability. Citizens are optimistic in their expectations for 2026 – 70% of respondents believe that it will be mostly successful for Russia. Such optimism is associated with positive trends in 2025.
Important political decisions in 2025. It is worth highlighting the adoption of the State National Policy Strategy of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2036 (approved by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 858 of 25 November 2025 – http://kremlin.ru/acts/news/78554), as well as the Concept of the State Migration Policy of the Russian Federation for the period 2026-2030. (approved by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation dated October 15, 2025, No. 738 –http://static.kremlin.ru/media/events/files/ru/qVoObOeUrpLFcowQJADmTEz6DYjp7thW.pdf). In principle, these legal acts highlight the attraction of qualified personnel, support for compatriots, facilitation of resettlement to Russia for bearers of traditional values, solving personnel problems in the economy, while ensuring national security and integration of migrants into Russian society. Thus, the emphasis is shifted to strengthening the value unity of the Russian civil nation, increasing the birth rate and health of the permanent Russian population, and not to immigration, which would only replace the labor force deficit.
Successes on the fronts of Special Military Operations. During the calendar year 2025, the armed forces of the Russian Federation liberated part of the territory of the DPR, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, and formed a security zone in Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, and Kharkiv regions. According to the report of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the total area of liberated territories in 2025 exceeded 5 thousand square kilometers. Among the liberated are quite large cities, such as Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk), Dimitrov (Mirnograd), Seversk, and Gulyajpole. A successful attack on the cities of Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Konstantinovka, Slaviansk and Kramatorsk is carried out. In total, since March 2014, the illegitimate Kyiv regime has lost control over 20% of the former territory and 25% of the former population of Ukraine. To this day, the state leaders of Russia express their determination to achieve all the goals of the Special Military Operation – full-scale denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine.
Transformations of international relations. The main result of the development of international relations in 2025 for Russia is a demarcation, if not a crack in the previously monolithic alliance of the “entire West” – the United States of America and the European Union – after Donald Trump came to power in the United States of America. Elections in several European countries – in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Belgium – strengthened political forces and leaders who are skeptical of the unlimited support for the hybrid war against Russia, as well as the financing and arming of the puppet Kyiv regime. Several major European countries – Italy and Spain – are seeking to cut funding to the Kyiv regime and limit their military spending. These trends are expected to strengthen in the new year.
Of course, the main factor of political processes in and around Russia is strengthening the resource potential of the Russian state, preserving its unity and territorial integrity, as well as strengthening the unity of the Russian nation around traditional civilizational values.
Author: dr Andrei Vladimirovich Baranov
doctor of political sciences and doctor of historical sciences; professor of the Department of Political Science and Political Management, Cuban State University, Russian Federation