Presidential Elections in Russia: Outcomes Since 1991

Russia's eighth presidential election is taking place from March 15-17, 2024, with a possible run-off on April 7. Vladimir Putin now faces three candidates from the opposition. According to observers, Putin is likely to be re-elected this weekend for a fifth term as Russia's leader.

As the following infographic shows, Russian presidential elections have only resulted in a second round of voting on one occasion since 1991. That was in 1996, when Boris Yeltsin was re-elected against the Communist candidate Gennady Zyuganov, defeating him in the second round with some 54 percent of the vote. The next five elections were all won in the first round by Vladimir Putin (2000, 2004, 2012, 2018) or his right-hand man Dmitry Medvedev (2008), with an average score of 68 percent of the vote.

The presidential term was extended during Dmitry Medvedev's presidency (2008-2012) from four to six years. This new legislation came into force when Putin took over as president in 2012. Following a constitutional referendum in July 2020, Putin signed another bill setting a strict limit of two presidential terms, consecutive or otherwise, but without taking into account previous or current mandates (including his own).

Written by: Tristan Gaudiaut

Translated by: Anna Fleck