Has Sergei Mitin become a “lame duck”? Novgorod residents talk about the prospects of the current governor. Investments per capita Mitin Sergey Gerasimovich resignation

After the trial of the ex-vice-governor of the Novgorod region Viktor Nechaev, will the security forces take on the head of the region?

Novgorod Governor Sergei Mitin may not make it to the 2017 elections. There are several reasons for this. The Novgorod region became the first region to actually commit a technical default last year. The region's debts are growing. The housing and communal services system is in a deplorable state, and the situation has remained unchanged for many years. In the region, corruption scandals occur with enviable regularity, in which, one way or another, local leaders at all levels are involved.

Not a year without a trial

Activities of the Governor of the Novgorod Region Sergei Mitin started with a scandal. In the spring of 2008, on a pleasure boat trip, the governor decided to demonstrate his achievements in shooting. In the circle of his subordinates, he began to shoot from small-caliber weapons. The governor shot, to tell the truth, so-so. As a result, he hit the fisherman in the back Alexandra Vasilyeva. The fisherman, fortunately, survived. The scandal was carefully hushed up. But this fact did not add to Sergei Mitin’s popularity.

Local residents were dissatisfied with many of Sergei Mitin’s ideas, including the construction of a pulp mill in the area. For this purpose, the company “Continentalinvest” appeared in the region. The holding is known as a participant in conflicts with raider overtones. However, the head of the region was not at all embarrassed by this. The media say that the plant cost the region a huge amount - 500 million euros. And it is not clear when these investments will pay off.

There was another unpleasant story. Sergei Mitin was suspected of involvement in the raider takeover of the Splav corporation, one of the leading manufacturers of equipment for nuclear power plants. On this basis, a conflict arose with the general director Vladimir Fedorov. Sergey Mitin won. Fedorov ended up behind bars.

Representatives of “Splav” decided to help the former leader. They asked Sergei Mitin to petition the court to change Fedorov’s preventive measure. According to representatives of the enterprise, Sergei Mitin asked in return for the petition a general power of attorney to manage the corporation’s property.

The governor's subordinates looked no better. Four years ago there was a big corruption scandal. Head of the local Federal Property Management Agency Victor Miter was accused of stealing property worth about 8 million rubles.

In 2013, searches were carried out in the administration, and on April 4, Mitin’s first deputy was detained Arnold Shalmuev. The investigation suspected him of stealing 22 million rubles, which should have been used for road repairs.

Two years ago, a former adviser to the governor of the Novgorod region was sentenced to 13 years Telman Mkhitaryan. There was talk that he was considered the “eminence grise” of the region. He, in turn, was accused of illegally taking over shares of several Novgorod enterprises.

And finally, in August 2015, a deputy was detained on suspicion of bribery. Victor Nechaev.

Last year, the region began collecting signatures for the resignation of Governor Sergei Mitin. All this happened against the background of a long-standing and long conflict between the governor and the mayor of Novgorod Yuri Bobryshev(both are from United Russia). The mayor and the governor did not find a common language with each other - Sergei Mitin tried to dismiss Yuri Bobryshev.

On the verge of default

The officials, carried away by their important affairs, apparently forgot about the main thing - the economic situation of the region. And it was getting worse.

For example, in February last year, the regional government was unable to repay a two billion VTB loan on time. After this, the regional government asked VTB to refinance the debt. As a result, according to experts, the Novgorod region became the first Russian region to, in fact, commit a technical default. Now the region's state debt is about 15.5 billion rubles.

In addition, experts believe that the problems of the region remain the collapsing heat and water supply system and the high tax burden on municipalities.

The pace of housing construction in the Novgorod region also lags behind the national average. Thus, since the beginning of the year, 119 thousand square meters of housing have been commissioned in the Novgorod region. This is only 28% of the housing commissioning plan for 2016 and 73% compared to the same indicator last year. The projected housing commissioning at the end of 2016 is 364 thousand square meters of housing, or 87% of the original plan for the current year.

Local budget revenues are declining. Thus, non-tax revenues of the consolidated budget amounted to 664.9 million rubles, which is 8.5% lower than the 2015 level. The receipt of income from the use of property decreased by 23.0 million rubles (or 8.5%), income from the sale of tangible and intangible assets by 55.3 million rubles (32.1%).

Official from the "60s"

However, Sergei Mitin does not like to talk about the problems of the region. Humanly speaking, this is understandable, why get upset again. Naturally, the Novgorod governor had bad relations with many journalists. Some media call him an official from the “60s.” They even compiled a psychological portrait of Sergei Mitin. If you believe him, then the Novgorod governor is an insecure person who is suspicious, touchy, and vindictive.

The governor also does not remain in debt and periodically gives journalists a beating.

And now, against the backdrop of an obvious economic recession and upcoming elections in the region, the struggle for the governor’s seat is intensifying. Local media reports on several groups with varying interests. On the one hand, Sergei Mitin and his team are clearly being pressured by the security forces, who intend to have their own person as governor. True, the governor himself also has protection in the form of certain business elites. He is predicted to resign “due to loss of confidence.” True, given the series of gubernatorial scandals, one can hardly expect that the resignation will be so imminent. You probably just have to wait until Sergei Mitin’s turn comes.

Sergei Mitin, worked in the government for many years. He was Deputy Minister of Economy in the government of Viktor Chernomyrdin. (1997). Retained his post in the government of Sergei Kiriyenko (April - August 1998). Remained in this position in the office of Sergei Stepashin in 1999 and Vladimir Putin 1999 - 2000.

Sergei Mitin took the position of Deputy Minister of Industry, Science and Technology in the government of Mikhail Kosyanov. He worked as director of the industry department and in the ministry of industry and energy. In 2004, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture in the government of Mikhail Fradkov.

In 2007, President Vladimir Putin appointed Mitin as acting governor of the Novgorod region.

Later, Vladimir Putin proposed that the regional legislative assembly approve Mitin’s candidacy for the post of governor.

In 2012, Sergei Mitin was elected governor of the Novgorod region.

Sergei Mitin has headed the Novgorod region since August 2007. His arrival was received positively. Firstly, he replaced Mikhail Prusak in this post, who at that time had been leading the region for 16 years and whose level of popularity left much to be desired.

Prusak’s former press secretary Igor Svintsov once said that the governor forbade renovations to the regional administration building “while the budget is in deficit... to make life feel better.” But for 16 years the budget remained in deficit, and in 2007 the new governor had to move into a building with balding carpets and peeling wall panels from the 70s.

Secondly, at the time of his appointment as governor, Mitin had 10 years of work in the federal government as a deputy minister (first in the Ministry of Economy, then Industry and, finally, Agriculture). This experience and the support of the federal authorities allowed us to hope that the regional economy would begin to develop more dynamically. In addition, hopes were pinned on the new governor in the fight against Telman Mkhitaryan’s well-known organized crime group in the region.

The new governor, with the help of the security forces, completed the last task quickly and successfully - Mkhitaryan was convicted, and his right-hand man Nikolai Kravchenko fled to Ukraine, where he was arrested and committed suicide on the eve of deportation to Russia.

As for the economy, the results of Mitin’s activities can be interpreted in different ways.

The governor positioned himself not as a politician, but as a “strong business executive,” repeatedly noting that the region is not an influential entity: the population is too small (about 620 thousand people), complex demography (almost a third are pensioners, hence the low birth rate and high death rate) , absence of large enterprises (with the exception of the Acron chemical holding) and raw material reserves. However, in almost all statistical calculations the region was in the strong middle peasants, which gave the regional leadership a reason to be proud. At the end of 2016, the head of the region stated that “the region demonstrates good indicators of economic development, the decrees of the Russian President are being implemented, all the instructions of the Russian President are fulfilled 100%.”

Positive effect

It was through economic activity that the governor earned himself many advantages. Thus, under Mitin, a bridge was built across the Volkhov River, the governor attracted several large investors to the region in the field of pig farming, poultry farming, and potato production. There is an annual increase in investment, GRP, and industrial production index.

Large industrial facilities have not appeared in the region (with the exception of the IKEA factory), but the Akron chemical enterprise, the Deka brewery, and the electronics industry are developing.

A number of large facilities have been built or reconstructed - the Ice Palace, a stadium in Veliky Novgorod, sports and recreation centers, a clinic, a hospital in the regions. His image was positively affected by the proposal to revive the estate of the composer Rachmaninov and improve the city embankments.

Sergei Mitin is remembered for his proposal to transfer commuter train passengers to motor transport. “It’s more profitable for us to buy a Zhiguli car for each family that uses electric trains than to give money to railway workers, increasing investments every year,” the governor said

Among other things, the governor was remembered for defending the interests of residents of the region against the backdrop of a large-scale conflict between the regions and Russian Railways over the issue of paying for the fares of beneficiaries on electric trains. Mitin then gained fame with his proposal to transfer passengers to motor transport. “It’s more profitable for us to buy a Zhiguli car for each family that uses electric trains than to give (money) to the railway workers, increasing investments every year,” Mitin said.

Political scientist Sergei Markelov, who advised the Novgorod head for several years, believes that during his 10 years in office, Mitin “managed not to peddle the region either politically or economically, without having any special connections in Moscow. And, despite the scandals with his deputies, he did not worsen the corruption component: in the Novgorod region, the “forceful stage of cleansing” that began with his arrival in 2007 took place on time and smoothly. Today, the first circle of Mitin’s encirclement - “Novgorod people, this is the best possible.”

According to Markelov, the governorship of Mitin can be characterized as a position between Scylla and Charybdis. “In recent years, Mitin has not been involved in the consolidation of elites; for a Varangian this is a thankless task. Therefore, he strengthened ties with the Kremlin. Mitin is considered a good lobbyist for the territory, he managed to raise large amounts of federal money for several large projects in Veliky Novgorod and the region,” the political scientist concluded.

Not without mistakes

Nevertheless, there were obvious mistakes in the governor’s work, primarily personnel errors. The result is the “scandals with deputies” that Markelov mentioned.

Thus, his first deputy Arnold Shalmuev was arrested and sentenced to almost nine years for theft of budget funds. Vice-Governor Viktor Nechaev, specially invited by Mitin to the post from Moscow, was sentenced to three and a half years for fraud.

The views of the population were also affected by miscalculations in the work of some departments of the regional government. For example, in October 2016, transport links in Veliky Novgorod were paralyzed: the lessor seized 80% of the buses in the city fleet for non-payment.

The political confrontation with the mayor of Veliky Novgorod, Yuri Bobryshev, which lasted more than three years, did not add to the governor’s popularity. The City Duma, controlled for the most part by the governor, failed twice to dismiss the mayor.

Political scientists: the region needs modern approaches to management

At the end of 2016, the St. Petersburg Politics Foundation and the communications holding Minchenko Consulting gave Mitina a three with a minus on a five-point scale in the rating of political survival, whereas in 2015 the rating was three with a plus. The foundation's political scientists characterized the Novgorod governor as capable of "effectively promoting the results of his work when communicating with federal officials." At the same time, experts noted that “the approaching end of office will update the negative agenda, including the unresolved issue of power in the regional center and criminal cases against the governor’s entourage.”

As a governor, Mitin is a strong middle peasant, but everything has an expiration date. Age is not the only reason for his resignation; problems of political governance in the region also certainly had an impact. There were mistakes, but there were also achievements. Now the region needs a new development driver. Modern approaches and updating the management system

Konstantin Kalachev

Head of the "Political Expert Group"

Novgorod sociologist and political scientist Alexander Zhukovsky commented on Mitin’s resignation as follows: “Objectively, the resignation is long overdue. Another thing is that both Mitin’s immediate circle and the local elites, with a “cool” attitude, did not openly confront the governor, because there was no visible replacement for Mitin.”

Until a certain point, the governor enjoyed great support from the population. In the 2012 elections, he received 75.95% of the votes. However, then, according to political scientists, he began to lose popularity. According to the head of the “Political Expert Group” Konstantin Kalachev, the decline in Mitin’s rating began a year after the elections, but the governor ignored this fact.

“As a governor, Mitin is a strong middle peasant, but everything has an expiration date. Age is not the only reason for his resignation; problems of political governance in the region also certainly had an impact. Much has been done, some of the new projects will have to be completed by the new governor. There were mistakes, but there were and achievements. Now the region needs a new development driver. Modern approaches and updating the management system,” Kalachev noted.

A new generation of managers is coming

As he noted in a conversation with a correspondent. TASS professor of the National Research University Higher School of Economics Oleg Matveychev, the resignation of Sergei Mitin and the appointment of an acting governor in the person of the General Director of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives Andrei Nikitin should be considered as part of the course towards changing generations of managers. “In resignations and appointments, in updating the composition of governors and acting governors, we see that they are hiring young personnel who already have work experience, who have new ideas related to new economic and management technologies,” the political scientist said.

Nikitin represents the younger generation of managers, 25-45 years old, when experience has already been gained, but there is no such indifference... Nikitin has extensive federal experience, which is considered successful: he managed to improve investment experience in many regions, simplify the procedure for registering enterprises, connecting enterprises to networks

Mikhail Vinogradov

President of the St. Petersburg Politics Foundation

A series of resignations of regional heads began last week. On February 6, the governor of the Perm Territory, Viktor Basargin, announced his resignation; the next day, the head of Buryatia, Vyacheslav Nagovitsyn, resigned. The head of the Department of Economic Policy and Development of Moscow, Maxim Reshetnikov, became the acting head of the Perm Territory, and the deputy head of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, Alexey Tsydenov, became the acting head of the Republic of Buryatia.

“Nikitin represents the younger generation of managers, 25-45 years old, when they have already gained experience, but there is no such indifference,” says political scientist, president of the St. Petersburg Politics Foundation Mikhail Vinogradov. “Nikitin has extensive federal experience, which is considered successful: he managed to achieve improvement investment experience in many regions, simplify the procedure for registering enterprises, connecting enterprises to networks. Has experience in communicating with business elites in the regions."

“Nikitin fits well into the line of young technocrats who are now being promoted to the posts of governors,” said, for his part, the director of the International Institute of Political Expertise, Evgeniy Minchenko.

Yulia Generozova, Viktor Dyatlikovich

12:27 — REGNUM “Resignation Sergei Mitin from the post of governor of the Novgorod region does not look like a voluntary one. It happened not by the will of Mitin, but by instructions from the Kremlin. This confirms the way he made a statement to the press today,” he commented to the correspondent IA REGNUM Novgorod journalist and political strategist Alexander Vlasov.

He emphasized that throughout last January, Mitin made it clear that he would remain as governor of the Novgorod region and would nominate his candidacy for another term of office.

“Exactly two weeks ago, on January 31, Sergei Mitin held a meeting with journalists and bloggers, and what did we hear then? He made plans and shared with us his hopes to improve the lives of Novgorodians. He spoke for a very long time and answered all the questions. And from his appearance and speech it was impossible to say that he was ready to retire. In my opinion, he was going to run for a third term,” Vlasov said, noting that two weeks later journalists heard “the exact opposite.”

“I was very surprised that the head of the media holding Agency of Information Communications Anatoly Gusev He informed us, journalists, that we were not allowed to ask questions. I still asked Mitin about his future plans, but he passed by, silently. What is this attitude towards the press? — Alexander Vlasov also noted.

As previously reported IA REGNUM, today, February 13, the governor of the Novgorod region Sergei Mitin made an official public address and announced his resignation.

“This year my term as governor of the Novgorod region ends. For almost 10 years my life has been inextricably linked with the Novgorod land. And I made a decision: not to participate in the gubernatorial elections in September and notified the President of the Russian Federation about this in advance and asked him for new instructions. This is my deliberate and balanced step. Today I want to sincerely thank everyone who has worked with me all these years, all residents of the Novgorod region. During this time I I sincerely fell in love with the Novgorod land, everyone who lives on this wonderful land, and, wherever I work, I pledge to devote all my strength and knowledge to the development and prosperity of the Novgorod land,” said Sergei Mitin.

Let us recall that Sergei Mitin served as governor of the Novgorod region since August 7, 2008; in 2012, he was re-elected to this position; his term of office expired on October 20, 2017.

To well-known Novgorodians (political scientists, journalists, public figures, bloggers) with the following questions: how do they assess the political prospects of the current governor, rumors about his possible early departure and what changes are expected in the Novgorod region if his powers are terminated?”

Anna Cherepanova, chairman of the Novgorod regional public organization “Meeting of Indigenous Novgorodians”: “In general, I do not highly assess Mr. Mitin’s chances of continuing his political career. I would not be surprised if after his resignation he retires or, like Mikhail Prusak, receives a symbolic position as an adviser or consultant for a short time. Mitin is an extremely unpopular figure in the Novgorod region; a negative attitude towards the governor has been accumulating for quite some time both in elite groups (remember the conflict with the mayor Yuri Bobryshev) and among the people. At meetings with voters, we recorded a sharply negative reaction of people to the personality of the Novgorod governor. People do not see positive changes, do not pin hopes for the best on the figure of Mitin; rather, on the contrary, they are inclined to hold him responsible for the deterioration of the socio-economic situation. Everyone is greatly annoyed by the authoritarian style of management, the inability to respect and value people, and window dressing in reports to the federal center that does not correspond to reality.

At the same time, we must not forget that it is the retinue that makes the king. In this sense, Mitin’s departure alone will not solve the problem of low quality management in the government of the Novgorod region. Therefore, the collective Mitin, the weak and unprofessional gubernatorial team, needs to leave. Let me remind you that Novgorod Yabloko is the only party that made a policy statement: “Resign Governor Mitin’s team and form a responsible and professional government.” We believe that the resignation of Mitin's team is a necessary but not sufficient condition for rebooting the management system in the Novgorod region. It will be necessary to change values, re-develop priorities and formulate a development strategy for the Novgorod region, restore broken communications, and establish cooperation with business, municipalities, and society.”

Alexey Gromsky, Chairman of the Antonovo Expert Club: “As I said earlier, the fall in ratings and low expert assessments of the effectiveness of the work of the governor of the Novgorod region Sergei Mitin will provoke the activity of applicants for the region in search of support at the federal level. In real politics it is impossible without such constant “probing of the soil.” This is such a cycle that generates whirlwinds of rumors. We need to understand that these processes, rumors about which reach us today and excite many minds, may not have any consequences in the future.

It is much more important not to be distracted by fortune-telling, but to concentrate on implementing projects that really contribute to improving the quality of life of people in the Novgorod region. If, for example, the project for improving the Volkhov embankment, turning it into a modern tourist and recreational facility, large-scale investments in the development of the Lyubytinsky district, some modernization processes at Akron and Kvant, become “popular” - they will receive broad support from Novgorodians, business circles, a variety of local politicians and commoners, then no change of governor will take them away from the region, that is, from you and me.

On the contrary, as is customary in a classic election campaign, the candidates themselves will be assessed based on their attitude to these projects. They, and therefore the development of the region, improving the quality of life of Novgorodians, will become a political constant. The dependence of projects aimed at development on individuals generally seems to me to be a harmful relic of the 90s, as a transitional period. If it is not overcome, the situation will be similar to Sergei Mitin’s communication with the Ministry of Sports regarding the construction of the second stage of the Electron stadium: only they agreed on everything with Mutko, but he went for a promotion and his successor knows nothing.”

Ekaterina Pereplavchenko, journalist: “I don’t know what prospects Sergei Mitin personally has as the governor of the Novgorod region. This is probably known in the Presidential Administration. I am more concerned about the prospects for the development of the Novgorod region and Veliky Novgorod. My conviction is that we need managers who have a different life experience than those people who today occupy leadership positions in the region. I do not undertake to evaluate their work. But once upon a time, a rotary telephone on the bedside table at home was an excellent and relevant way of communication, but today nothing compares in functionality to a smartphone.

The same thing, excuse me, can be said about people. We need managers with a different education, priorities, outlook and, in general, an understanding of the conditions under which people will be comfortable living in a particular territory. What solutions will be beneficial to the regional economy, how can one really attract investors, how to effectively spend budget money. Previous high-ranking posts and medals, the route of stay in other regions are not important here, but the personal background of the person coming to this significant post is important. Of course, we need mobility in thinking and decision-making, tolerance for different opinions and the ability to conduct dialogue.

Probably, all these qualities can also be possessed by the “wise men” from the cohort of governors who are already over 60. But today the time has come for young managers, those who are 40-50. I am convinced that among this generation there are already enough people who are able to cope with such a position. And most importantly, they do not have such a huge trail of post-war and Soviet education, fear of the unknown, and, in general, a decrease in various activities, as logically happens among people of retirement age. There is no longer any place to slow down.”

Stanislav Melnikov, trade unionist: “About the rumors about his departure, I want to exclaim: “Again?!” Seriously, our “vertical” is structured in such a way that I don’t see any bright prospects yet. Well, a new “mayor” will arrive from Moscow, but the system will not change... The new governor (if there is one) can be recommended to be closer to the people and simpler. Although formally, we elect him, not Moscow.

Valentina Stepanova, editor of the Transparency International R website, journalist: “Sergei Mitin was called to the Novgorod region in order to carry out its decriminalization. However, time has shown that this problem was not solved. Loud corruption scandals in the governor’s inner circle are clear evidence of this. Two deputy governors of the Novgorod region have already been convicted of corruption-related crimes, which outrages even Novgorodians who are far from politics and public life. In addition, the region’s budget is bursting at the seams, the unemployment rate has increased significantly, and the region cannot boast of a breakthrough in attracting investment or developing the economy.

It is obvious that the former ministerial official, who succeeded in the apparatus games, remained a “Varangian”, a temporary worker who came to the region to realize his personal ambitions. This position is not conducive to working for public interests, as Mitin’s “rule” demonstrates. In my opinion, Novgorodians will remember the governor as “a rude man with the political style of a drill sergeant.” This is how Simon Schuster from Time aptly described him. I often observed this style of management personally when, as a journalist, I attended meetings in the regional government, as well as at meetings of the governor with teams of various organizations.

Separately, it is worth noting Mitin’s intolerance towards criticism of himself. Related to this is the purge of the region’s media field and attempts to suppress any political activity uncontrolled by it. I believe that this is evidenced by the change of ownership of two online media outlets (Vashi-Novosti and Direct Speech), not without Mitin’s participation, as well as the unprecedented efforts aimed at preventing the Yabloko party from participating in elections to the Novgorod Regional Duma.

As for rumors about the early termination of the governor’s powers, they have been circulating with varying intensity in socio-political circles for at least the last 5 years. However, Mitin is still in his post. It is worth taking into account the good result of the party in power in the last elections to the State Duma and regional parliament. However, it is quite possible that the decision to terminate his powers was made before the September elections. In my opinion, if it was indeed adopted, then one of the reasons could have been the protracted conflict between the head of the region and the mayor of the regional center, Yuri Bobryshev. This scandalous story, widely covered in regional and federal media, discredited the ruling party as a whole. However, during the pre-election period, the protagonists of the conflict again began to publicly demonstrate their affection for each other and their readiness to cooperate.

I believe that Sergei Mitin one way or another belongs to the clan of “untouchable” officials, and therefore his political career is unlikely to end, unless he himself wants to retire. As they say, “they don’t abandon their own.” If he resigns, I would like the region to be governed by a younger politician with progressive views. However, the resource-poor, subsidized Novgorod region is hardly attractive for a person who wants to build a successful political career. In the current political picture in Russia, the region is more suitable for the role of a “paradise” for ending the career of another aging official. In my opinion, Novgorodians want the region to be governed by an effective manager who could achieve a significant improvement, first of all, in the economic situation. Regional elites expect transparent conditions for doing business, and the public expects the creation of conditions for the development of civil society and freedom of speech.”

Evgeny Chuprunov, political scientist: “Sergei Mitin has held his post for more than 9 years - few of his colleagues can boast of such “political longevity.” Considering the fact that in Russia governors cannot hold office for more than two terms in a row (however, one must keep in mind that the countdown begins in 2012), actual nomination for a third term is rather exceptional. Thus, technically, in 2017, Mitin has the opportunity to be nominated for a third term, but practically, such a possibility is not a priority. On the other hand, given his age, it is obvious that it would be preferable for him to continue his career in federal structures - this would mean development, while a third term would mean the end of his political career. I will also note that Mitin, throughout his entire term of office, demonstrated loyalty to the guidelines from the center, so it would be logical to assume that if he leaves the post of governor, he will be offered a position corresponding to his current status.

As for the rumors about his possible early retirement, it is more interesting to talk only about indirect signs, which, however, may mean something completely different. The first point is that Mitin has practically disappeared from the pages of the media. Typically, regional journalists wrote much more about the governor’s activities, and the head of the region himself actively attended public events at various levels. In particular, the governor was expected to be present at the closing of the status anniversary XV All-Russian television competition “TEFI-Region”, however, Sergei Mitin never appeared there.

The second point is that the Novgorod region received a loan in the amount of 900 million rubles (the funds should arrive in December in two tranches). The loan is quite large, so, given the difficult economic situation, I am inclined to look at the allocation of this amount as an opportunity to stabilize payments on the region’s debt obligations. That is, if we assume the prospect of a new governor appearing in the near future, the loan can be seen as an attempt to streamline financial affairs.

The third point is that I have already written more than once that it is better to “introduce” a new governor to the region in advance. The manager must understand the specifics of the region, delve into the problems, technologists must have time to raise its popularity in the eyes of the population. If the rumors about the arrival of a new person are true, then now is the time for this, because there are only about 10 months left before the gubernatorial elections.

However, it is impossible to predict the Kremlin’s personnel policy with 100% certainty: even the existence of some preliminary agreements is not a guarantee that events will develop according to the planned plan. Therefore, in the near future various rumors will be circulated, the names of the candidates will emerge, but it will be possible to find out the reliable situation only at the very last moment.

Local elites will certainly want to take advantage of the change of governor to their advantage (if not now, then in the fall of 2017) and will try to strengthen their position, redistribute spheres of influence, and protect their business interests. This endeavor is nothing new. Ordinary people will pin their hopes for an improvement in their financial situation on the change of governor, however, the most far-sighted citizens understand that not as much depends on the governor in this area as they would like. Macroeconomics and geopolitics today influence the situation of people to a much greater extent than the governor of a particular region.”

Roman Yakovlev, blogger: “I think that Sergei Gerasimovich will remain in his post until the end of his term of office, that is, until the fall of 2017. Then a new person will come to the region. Sergei Gerasimovich can be called a governor with a poorly developed team intellectually. If we talk about vice-governors, then two of Mitin’s (already former) deputies have been convicted, and three current ones are incompetent. Only First Vice Governor Veronica Minina looks more or less advantageous. All the rest are more likely to “finish” their criminal cases. The prospects of the current governor are very doubtful, and, naturally, he will leave in September 2017. Among the latest events, we can especially highlight the recent resignation of Arnold Shalmuev from the post of first vice-governor of the region, which occurred three years after the initiation of a criminal case against him. I am sure that after his “sudden” dismissal, Shalmuev can show all his cards in the “Road Case”, and then his former boss, Sergei Mitin, will be invited to the Supreme Court - first as a witness, and then, possibly, as an accused.”