The evolution of the Duma

​​In autumn 2021, the State Duma will enter its eighth legislative period. We show in several graphics how it came about that the Russian parliament has fewer and fewer powers, while the ruling party United Russia and the president are becoming stronger and stronger.

Birth of the Duma

On January 11, 1994, the Russian State Duma met for the first time. It replaces the Congress of People's Deputies 💬 and the Supreme Soviet of Russia as legislative bodies. The confrontation between these two institutions and President Boris Yeltsin led to a political crisis in the fall of 1993, which culminated in the shelling of the White House. There was then a referendum on the constitution 💬 and a Duma election took place. The Duma deputies now have significantly fewer powers compared to the previous members of parliament.

The work of the first Duma will also be limited in terms of time: instead of four, it will only meet for two years - elections will be held again in January 1996.

The first Duma is sometimes referred to as the fifth Duma, including the pre-revolutionary Duma - which, however, are neither comparable in status nor in terms of powers to the first Duma from 1994 to 1996.

The most important event in the legislative period of the first Duma is the First Chechen War, which Boris Yeltsin started on December 11, 1994 as an “operation to restore the constitutional order”. The situation in Chechnya is becoming the hottest and most discussed topic.

After the Battle of Grozny and the offensive on other areas of Chechnya, Russia is overwhelmed by a wave of terrorist attacks. One of the first attacks that particularly shocked Russian society was the taking of hostages in a hospital in Budyonnovsk. It claims more than 180 lives. The only thing that led to more Duma debates later was the hostage-taking in the school in Beslan 💬 in 2004.

The central theme of the first Duma is the recent collapse of the Soviet Union 💬 and the question of a possible reunification with the former Soviet republics. The MPs are discussing, among other things, a revision of the 1991 Belowescher Agreement and the “restoration of a unified state”. In this context, it is primarily about Belarus, Transnistria, and the future of the Black Sea Fleet 💬 and the Republic of Crimea. Over time, this question fades into the background, only to resurface 20 years later with renewed force.

The problem about Crimea is a Russian problem - it is about the restoration of a unified state.

April 14, 1995, Sergei Baburin, deputy of the first, second and fourth Duma, faction The Russian Way, later Rodina (Homeland) party

The Duma and the President

In December 1995 the second State Duma was elected. None of the parties managed to achieve an absolute majority, but the clear majority of votes went to the communist KPRF , which was in clear conflict with Yeltsin. Just six months later, Yeltsin achieved a sensational re-election to the presidency, which only fueled the conflict with parliament: between 1996 and 1999, Yeltsin used his veto power 273 times, meaning he prevented almost one in four pieces of legislation.

In the summer of 1998, one of the worst financial crises in Russia's recent history occurred. The government is failing to keep its promises, with the opposition Duma also bearing a large share of the blame for blocking urgently needed stabilization measures. Finally, on August 17, the government declared conditional national bankruptcy (Russian defolt ), which was accompanied by a rapid devaluation of the ruble.

For many Russians, August 17, 1998 remains to this day one of the central symbols of the stormy, wild 1990s 💬 .

After the crisis, Yeltsin seems to have lost confidence in the abilities of the young liberal economists and is relying on the siloviki , which also includes the new head of the FSB : Vladimir Putin.

The economic crisis intensified the conflict between Yeltsin and the Duma. In the spring of 1998, the Duma twice prevented Sergei Kirijenko 's appointment as Prime Minister and only approved it on the third attempt in order to avert a dissolution of the Duma. Then, in August and September, deputies rejected Chernomyrdin's appointment to the same post (which he had held before Kiriyenko). This time they are probably ready to go all out, i.e. to vote against the president's nominee for the third time and at the same time initiate impeachment proceedings against the president. That would result in a political crisis: According to the constitution, if a candidate is rejected three times, the president has the right to dissolve the Duma - but not if impeachment proceedings are already underway against him. The newspapers are reporting these days about an “imminent civil war.”

Finally, for the third time, Yeltsin proposed Primakov for the post of prime minister, whose candidacy was accepted, and the Duma continued its work. But a short time later, the impeachment proceedings against the president resumed. Yeltsin is accused - in addition to the "destruction" of the Soviet Union, the Beloves Agreement, the dissolution of the Supreme Soviet and the war in Chechnya - of the "genocide of the Russian people", which means the decline in living standards and the demographic crisis for which Yeltsin and his government are held responsible. In the end, there were not enough votes for impeachment and Yeltsin retained his post this time too. But his successor Vladimir Putin, who is entering the political stage at this very time, will learn lessons from the confrontation between the executive and the legislative branches.

The appearance of Putin

A few weeks before declaring national bankruptcy, Yeltsin appointed the previously unknown official Vladimir Putin as head of the FSB. Barely a month later, his name was mentioned for the first time in the Duma. At the height of the conflict between deputies and President Yeltsin, Putin declares that “those who choose the path of violating the constitution and trying to inflame the situation using unconstitutional means will meet the necessary resistance.” In the Duma, this statement is interpreted as a threat to violently dissolve parliament along the lines of October 1993.

As a small note, I would like to say to colleagues that those who shot at the White House […] are gradually passing away. The ways of the Lord are unfathomable. Everyone – both the Putins and the rest – should be aware of this.

September 2, 1998, Yevgeny Loginov, LDPR deputy of the first, second and third Duma

A year later, in August 1999, Putin was elected prime minister by the Duma, mind you on the first attempt: he was not taken seriously by the opposition - they were simply waiting for Yeltsin's term to end so that they could come to power in the next election.

The birth of United Russia

On December 31, 1999, Boris Yeltsin announced his resignation at the New Year's address. This is the beginning of the Putin era . But there are still a few months until the election, which Putin wins in the first round. Meanwhile, the Duma, newly elected in December, begins work shortly after the New Year. This time too, the communist KPRF has the majority, followed by the jedinstwo (unity) movement, which was launched a few months earlier to support Putin. The two agree to divide key positions in parliament between themselves. But as early as 2001, a new coalition emerged. Two competing centrist parties, Yedinstvo (Unity) and Otechestvo – Vsya Rossiya, (Fatherland – All Russia, owr), announce their merger and the creation of a new party: jedinaya rossiya ( United Russia ). This begins the formation of a new party system .

Duma of reforms

The Third Duma (1999 to 2003) is the last parliament in which there is still a certain diversity of Russian political forces: from the communists (KPRF, 24 percent) to the liberals (SPS, 8.5 percent and Yabloko, 6 percent). It is also the last Duma in which a broad consensus is needed to get a majority on one issue or another. During this period, the semelny codex (land code), which is crucial for the country's development, was adopted. This allows the free sale of land, something the majority of the Communist Party had vehemently resisted in previous legislative periods. A tax reform is being carried out in which the income tax for all citizens will be reduced to 13 percent - regardless of income. Finally, a legislative package on state symbolism is also passed, with which Russia will reintroduce the Soviet anthem 💬 .

The State Duma – “no place for debates”

In the 2003 election, for the first time, not a single liberal party made it into the Duma. For this purpose, the national patriots from the родина (homeland) bloc are elected to parliament - although this project was probably supported by the Kremlin in order to deprive the communists of votes.

By the next election, Rodina had already dissolved and was partially absorbed into the center-left party sprawedliwaja rossija ( Fair Russia ). Initially, the presidential administration almost envisages it as a second governing party alongside United Russia, but in the end it becomes part of the solid model of the four so-called system parties, which, in addition to United Russia and Fair Russia, also includes the populist ldpr and the kprf, which has existed since the mid-1990s. The latter only represents opposition on a few topics.

The former heterogeneity of the parties and factions is disappearing; no other force has been able to enter parliament since then.

That's probably why Duma Chairman Boris Gryslov's longer statement has shrunk in people's memories to a short formula: "Parliament is not a place for debates."

I think the State Duma is not a platform for political struggles, slogans and ideologies; it is a platform for constructive and effective legislation.

December 29, 2003, Boris Gryslov, Chairman of the Fourth and Fifth Duma

The challenges of the time

On September 1, 2004, terrorists took control of School No. 1 in Beslan. During the rescue operation, an explosion occurs and fire breaks out in the building. More than 300 people die, including more than 180 children. To date, the Beslan hostage crisis is probably the worst terrorist attack in Russian history. Combating terrorism becomes the most discussed topic in the fourth Duma.

In the same year, the presidential election took place in Ukraine, which Viktor Yanukovych won in the second round. After numerous reports of election fraud, tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Kiev and the so-called Orange Revolution began. The government agrees to a third round of voting, from which the opposition politician Viktor Yushchenko emerges as the winner. In Russia, these events are sparking a debate about alleged Western interference and the danger that such “technologies” could also be used in the Russian Federation.

The very next year, in 2004, the government's decision to monetize social benefits triggered the largest wave of protests in Russia's recent history.

These events directly or indirectly cause profound changes in the political system. United Russia, which holds an absolute majority in the Fourth (2003) and Fifth Duma (2007), can adopt any laws proposed by the presidential administration without having to take other parties into account. Direct election of governors is abolished immediately after the terrorist attack in Beslan. From now on they will be appointed by the President (formally after the approval of the respective local parliament). The election of Duma deputies via single-member constituencies will also be abolished; only party lists will remain. The minimum voter turnout will also be abolished; the five percent threshold for entry into the Duma will be raised to seven percent; The column with the option “against all” will also be abolished. To this end, new rules for the registration of parties are being introduced, which will reduce the number of parties from a few dozen to around ten. This was soon followed by a constitutional reform, according to which the Duma's legislative period was increased from four to five years and the presidential term of office was increased from four to six years.

We must create a system of government that preventively makes it impossible to incite our society or overthrow our state structures.

Vladimir Putin (2004)

Our country is currently undergoing gigantic transformation processes and its stability is being put to the test - by internal and external enemies. These new challenges cannot be met through moral postulates alone [...]; appropriate laws are needed that are enforced with appropriate means.

February 11, 2006 Sergei Abeltsev, LDPR deputy of the first, second, fourth and fifth Dum a

System opposition and non-system opposition

As the president's power increases, the distinction between a system and non-system opposition emerges.

The system opposition refers to parties that are represented in the Duma (excluding the ruling party Yedinaya Rossiya, United Russia). The other factions show their oppositional character in different ways. The LDPR supports the majority of the draft laws, while the KPRF, which is represented by more MPs, tends to vote against them (see distribution by party).

The non-system opposition refers to political parties and forces that are not represented in parliament - they usually fail when they try to register as a party. They moved to the center of political life during the protests from 2011 to 2013.

The Bolotnoye Movement and the Crazy Printer

The next Duma election will take place in December 2011. Thanks to numerous independent observers, large-scale counterfeits are being uncovered. The day after the election, demonstrators took to the streets in Moscow demanding non-recognition of the election results, according to which the ruling United Russia party held just over half of the seats in parliament. The Bolotnoye protest movement takes its name from the Bolotnaya Ploshchad not far from the Kremlin, where a few days later a protest with tens of thousands of participants took place, for the first time in years.

Such political protests, unprecedented in the history of Russia under Putin, provoke ambivalent reactions from those in power. On the one hand, a liberalization of the political system begins: gubernatorial elections and single-member constituencies are being reintroduced in the Duma election (albeit with a complicated filter system), making it easier for parties to register. On the other hand, the State Duma, which is loyal to the Kremlin (the election results were never revoked), passes some obviously repressive laws. It is said on social networks that the fourth Duma works like a “crazy printer”.

Repressive laws

The repressive laws passed after the Bolotnaya Ploshchad protests on May 6, 2012 and the start of Vladimir Putin's third term in office are tightening the rules for protest actions - demonstrations, meetings, marches. Failure to comply will result in administrative and criminal sanctions.

Pussy Riot's action at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior provokes discussions about traditional and family values. The Duma criminalizes insulting the feelings of believers, bans “gay propaganda” among minors, and passes the Dima Yakovlev Law banning Americans from adopting orphans from Russia (in response to the emergence of the Magnitsky List targeting Russian officials). In this context, Vladimir Putin introduces the term “mental brackets” into the vocabulary.

Child protection initially also justified the action against the Internet, which became as important a source of information as television, which is completely controlled by the state. First of all, more and more reasons are being given for blocking websites. In 2016, the Yarovaya law package was passed, giving secret services large-scale access to the network.

In the summer of 2012, the Duma passed a law on NGOs and introduced the term foreign agent. It will later be revised several times and expanded to include media and even private individuals. Against the background of growing tensions with the West, the Duma is increasingly talking about the so-called fifth column and the need for bans and restrictions on people with a second citizenship or residence abroad.

The Crimean Consensus

Immediately after Putin's return to the presidency in 2012, conservative and repressive laws began to be passed, but because of the events of 2014, any discussion of them was suppressed. After the Euro-Maidan in Ukraine, the annexation of Crimea, the war in Donbass, the Western sanctions and the Russian counter-sanctions, the so-called “Crimean consensus” is emerging among the political elite. This is particularly clear in the increased approval ratings for Vladimir Putin, but also in the popularity of the conservative idea of ​​a “Russian world” (Russian russki mir ), which is opposed to the “collective West”. United Russia emerged from the 2016 Duma election with a record result of 75 percent of the seats. Even though voter turnout was surprisingly low (less than half of those eligible to vote exercised their right to vote), it was primarily those citizens who were pressured to do so by the government who went to the polls.

The seventh Duma (2016 to 2021) begins its legislative period with two extremely unpopular decisions: raising the retirement age and increasing VAT. In 2020 she also agreed to a constitutional reform initiated by Putin.

Some of these constitutional amendments merely stipulate what has long been practice: restrictions for people with foreign citizenship, bans on same-sex marriages, priority of national law over international law. Other changes further expand the president's power. And finally, from the Duma of all places comes the proposal to “set Putin’s term in office to zero” and thus enable him to remain in power until 2036. Putin therefore has the chance to experience three more Duma legislative periods during his time in power.