Smolensk Regional Duma Smolensk
Political scientist, professor at Kursk State University Vladimir Slatinov assessed the prospects of the chairman of the Smolensk regional Duma and the head of the regional branch of “United Russia” Igor Lyakhov. According to the analyst, today’s trends show that the governors of the “new wave” after their appointments carry out reshuffles not only in the leadership of regional parliaments, but also change mayors.
- If we take the weighted average history in the middle lane regions, then, as a rule, there is a change of president after the restart of the regional parliament during the elections. It is a natural process. The new governor is gradually resetting the region’s management system for himself. It doesn’t happen instantly, but rather consistently. And these positions – the mayor of the regional center, the head of the regional branch of United Russia and the speaker of the regional parliament – these are status positions that are considered important and in the vast majority of cases changes take place here . But their speed and nature, although they have a general pattern, depend on the specificities of each region, notes the political scientist.
Slatinov reminded that in 2023 double elections will be held in the Smolensk region. In addition to the election of the governor (Vasily Anokhin is now in the status of “interim”), elections for the regional parliament will be held in September. In this respect, believes the analyst, two scenarios are possible.
— The first is the new governor’s pact with the elites, with the players who are now elites, which does not imply a forceful restart of the regional governance system. It’s possible. The second option is the opposite, a powerful restart option. This is a change in the leadership of “ER” and the election of a new president, the expert suggested.
Vladimir Slatinov pointed to the fact that the subjectivity of “new wave governors”, including Vasily Anokhin, is limited. In this regard, the presidential administration takes key decisions on the change of leadership in the region. Therefore, the future of Igor Lyakhov at the head of the regional Duma and the regional branch of “ER” largely depends on the assessment that will be made in Moscow.
- The unusual situation in the Smolensk region is that Anokhin once worked as Ostrovsky’s deputy and for him the region is not a blank sheet of paper, as for many other “new wave governors” who s adapt for a while, then rebuild the system control for themselves region. But I wouldn’t rule out either option. Which option would be preferable will be decided by the presidential administration based on an analysis of the situation in the region and the opinion of the new interim,” summarized the interlocutor of SmolNarod.
Igor Lyakhov has been the head of the Smolensk branch of United Russia since 2012. Despite the party’s less than exceptional achievements in the political arena in recent years, unlike businessman Nikolai Shumeiko, in 2022 the politician again managed to retain his position in the party hierarchy.
The resignation of the governor of the region traditionally brings back to the agenda the question of the future career of the president of the regional legislature. What is remembered about the ten-year-old child of Igor Lyakhov is in the material of our colleagues.
