Prigozhin became the most popular presidential candidate after Putin

1,600 people took part in the survey; the survey took place May 13–16

Sociologists from Russian Field conducted a study on the 2024 presidential elections in Russia. In it, they asked an open question about whom Russians are ready to support in the elections. In this case, respondents name the answer themselves, rather than choosing from a list.

In order not to miss new texts from “Layout”, subscribe to our telegram channel

30.2% named Vladimir Putin. Another 28.2% found it difficult to answer, 5.9% would not support anyone or would not go to the polls. The most popular candidates after the current president were (not counting the answer - he would vote for himself or for a member of his family) “Kremlin chef” Yevgeny Prigozhin (2%), oppositionist Alexei Navalny (1.8%), deceased ex-leader of the LDPR Vladimir Zhirinovsky (1.3%) .

Citizens also named entrepreneur and former candidate from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Pavel Grudinin (1.1%), convicted ex-head of the Khabarovsk Territory Sergei Furgal (1.1%), Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin (0.8%), and opposition politician Ilya Yashin (0.7%) as presidential candidates for whom they are ready to vote .

0.6% of voters are still ready to vote for Joseph Stalin , despite his death, politician Nikolai Platoshkin, political scientist Ekaterina Shulman and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov enjoy the support of 0.5%. Also on the list are Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin , Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu , author of the “Deputy Diary” channel Nikolai Bondarenko and Deputy Head of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev .

Prigozhin has gained popularity because he is now “well-known,” political scientist Konstantin Kalachev told VERSTKA. “Prigozhin’s popularity is situational and has not yet been converted into trust,” he believes. Kalachev compared the desire to vote for the “Kremlin chef” with the option “against everyone.” “He won’t be elected anyway. If he had the slightest chance of being elected, then the results would be about him, and not about the role he is currently playing,” the expert believes. On the contrary, the willingness to vote for Navalny and the general appearance of his name in the poll speaks of a radical protest, Kalachev is sure. In turn, voting for Zhirinovsky now resembles “also a form of protest, but close to a farce.” “He is now instead of Lenin. Volfych lived, Volfych is alive, Volfych will live forever,” said the political scientist.

Answering other questions from researchers, a third of those surveyed - 31% - considered it unacceptable or rather unacceptable for a president to hold this post for more than two terms. The opposite point of view is shared by 66% of respondents. The most supporters of the idea that this is acceptable are among those who receive information on TV (80%), the least among readers of Telegram channels (59%).

According to the survey, women support Putin more often than men (33% versus 24%) . Also, the most supporters of the current president are among those who receive information from television (39%), and the least among those who read Telegram channels (23%). When listing the qualities they like in Putin, respondents named determination and perseverance (7.9% and 7.6%). What respondents find most unattractive about the president is Putin’s softness (5.2%).

Editorial "Layout"