Komsomolskaya Pravda: "Putin's approval rating climbs to new heights"
Over 62% of respondents in a survey by the Yuri Levada Analytical Centre (Levada Centre) are willing to vote for Vladimir Putin.
The survey conducted by Levada Centre in January showed that Putin is still the favourite in the presidential race. When asked whether they would vote, and if so, for whom, 62% of those asked selected Putin. KPRF leader Gennady Zyuganov was second with a substantial loss of support — 15%, followed by LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky — 9%, indipendent candidate and billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov - 6%, A Just Russia leader Sergei Mironov — 5%, one of the Yabloko founders Grigory Yavlinsky — 2%, and Irkutsk Region Governor Dmitry Mezentsev, who had dropped out of the race, received less than 1%.
According to the analysts, the survey shows an accurate picture. They are forecasting a Putin victory after the first round of voting.
"Without a doubt, the breakdown of votes in the survey reflects the real electoral situation," said Vitaly Ivanov, vice president of the Russian Centre for Current Politics. "In other words, the survey makes it clear, that Putin will win after the first round, while Zyuganov will take about 10% of vote. The other candidates' results will be insignificant. The figures given by Levada Centre and the forecast of Putin's breakthrough do not differ much from the surveys conducted by other research services, VtsIOM for example. Whether Putin takes 50% or 60% of the vote, or whether Zyuganov ends up with 12% or 15% is not relevant. What is more important is that the trend is clear at this point."
"The results of the latest surveys are accurate and reflect the present situation," said General Director of the Agency for Political and Economic Communications, Dmitry Orlov. "Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is the candidate for most Russians. He is the voters' choice, he is the main newsmaker in the presidential campaign. The December rallies raised a very simple question: if not Putin, then who? It became clear, that if opposition leader Gennady Zyuganov or one of the others in the news were the only alternatives, the choice for a conservative voter could only be Putin. As the election approaches, the conservative part of the population, like pensioners, military officers, government employees and voters in industrial cities who support Putin, are becoming more active. Thus, the results of the Levada Centre survey are not surprising."
"Taking into consideration this and other surveys, conducted by VtsIOM or the Public Opinion Foundation, we can forecast a straightforward victory for Putin after the first round. The voters' preferences are evident — Vladimir Putin is their favourite," said Orlov.
The survey, conducted by the Yuri Levada Analytical Centre, took place between January 20-23 in 130 cities and towns in 45 Russian regions and included over 1,520 respondents of 18 years and older. The margin of error is below 3.4%.
Ilya Dianov
