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[Second Issue of the Day]
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TWO YEARS ON TUESDAY SINCE VLADIMIR PUTIN'S ELECTION AS
RUSSIAN PRESIDENT
RIA Novosti
March 26, 2002
Tuesday, March 26, 2002 marks two years since Vladimir Putin was elected the
Russian President.
On December 31, 1999, Putin became an acting head of the State. That day first Russian President Boris Yeltsin voluntarily ceased performing his duties and in accordance with RF Constitution's Part 3, Article 92 Russian government head Vladimir Putin took a temporary seat in the office.
According to the law "On the RF President Elections", extraordinary presidential elections were scheduled for March 26, 2000.
Vladimir Putin expressed his intention to run for presidency in 2000 on August 9, 1999, after Boris Yeltsin's TV address to the Russian people, in which he called Vladimir Putin his successor.
"If the Russian citizens give me credence and elect me President, I will continue to conduct the present reforms," Vladimir Putin said in his interview with British newspaper The Financial Times on December 11, 1999.
On January 12, 2000 an initiative group, which consisted of 20 regional leaders, heads of the largest natural monopolies, masters of culture, mass media leaders, nominated Vladimir Putin a candidate for presidency. On January 13, Vladimir Putin confirmed his intention to run for the Presidential seat.
On March 26, 2000 Vladimir Putin was elected the Russian President. In the first round of elections he collected 39,740,434 votes, which equaled 52,94% of the popular vote. On May 7, 2000, Putin officially came into office.
Vladimir Putin's activities as the President enabled most Russians to form an opinion about him as that of a leader whose prime aim was to return Russia's former dignity; whose economic choice was market and political choice - democracy.
According to the estimates of most political scientists, Vladimir Putin is a purposeful and a strong politician who knows what to do and acts to achieve that. That is why an overwhelming majority of Russians trust their President.
According to a survey conducted on March 16, 2002 by the Public Opinion Foundation, 59% of Russians out of 1,500 respondents from 100 localities of 44 (out of 89) Federation constituent members, believe that during his tenure of office, Vladimir Putin has never given them a reason to be out of conceit with him.
61% of Russians believe that Vladimir Putin had many breakthroughs. Only 13% of the respondents express the opposite point of view.
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