Kemerovo, Kemerovo, Russian Federation
Kemerovo, Kemerovo, Russian Federation
UDC 32
UDC 321
UDC 323
The article examines the political functions and status of governors in the context of centralized federalism in Russia in 2010–2024 using the example of the Siberian Federal District. Such legislative changes as Federal Law No. 414-FZ (Dec. 12, 2021), which strengthened the power vertical and limited regional political autonomy. The analysis covered gubernatorial election mechanisms, e.g., the so-called municipal filter, as well as interactions between the federal government, regional elites, and local authorities. The authors compared Kemerovo, Irkutsk, and Novosibirsk regions, namely their governance models and the impact of economic factors on governors’ political stability. The comparative analysis also featured the financial, personnel-related, and coercive tools of federal control. The research revealed the trend toward uniform regional governance: the autonomy of governors is eroding, even as their official mandates remain extensive. The local economic situation correlates with the political stability of governors while crisis phenomena directly affect the stability of regional authorities. The reinforcement of the power vertical is driven by the system of Key Performance Indicators. The top-down monitoring continues to advance, though it must still navigate the tension between central mandates and territorial diversity.
governors, federalism, centralization of power, municipal filter, regional elite, political regionalism, Siberian Federal District
1. Kynev A. V. Twenty Years of Putin’s electoral reform: Zigzags that turned into a cycle. Neprikosnovennyi zapas. Debaty o politike i kulture, 2020, (1): 62–75. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/wkdnbf
2. Romanovsky A. A. The main trends in the rotation of the governor’s corps in the regions of the Siberian Federal District. The Bulletin of Irkutsk State University. Series Political Science and Religion Studies, 2023, 44: 12–20. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.26516/2073-3380.2023.44.12
3. Turovsky R. F., Luizidis E. M. Exploring the causes of gubernatorial resignations in Russia. Polis. Political Studies, 2022, (4): 161–178. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2022.04.13
4. Turovsky R. F., Sukhova M. S. Challenges of regional socio-economic polarization in Russia: Is the state policy successful? Political Science, 2024, (1): 14–50. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31249/poln/2024.01.01
5. Kryshtanovskaya O. V. The key trends in forming the governance elite in Russia in 2020–2030. Russian Foundation for Basic Research Journal. Humanities and social sciences, 2020, (5): 117–134. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/ruspvk
6. Turovsky R. F. The center and the regions: Problems of political integration. Moscow: HSE, 2006, 398. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/qoghfb
7. Gaman-Golutvina O. V. Political elites as an object of research in national political science. Political Science, 2016, (2): 38–73. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/twyhto
8. Abramov V. I., Andreev V. D. Concept of the integrated digital ecosystem architecture of the Kemerovo region featuring mechanism of data collection. Vestnik Kemerovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriia: Politicheskie, sotsiologicheskie i ekonomicheskie nauki, 2023, 8(2): 238–248. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.21603/2500-3372-2023-8-2-238-248
9. Biryukov S. V., Chirun S. N., Andreev A. V. Digital governance: Searching for new models of public administration in the current situation. PolitBook, 2025, (4): 6–20. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/beyxlp
10. Bulatov A. G. Recruitment channels of the highest administrative elite of Russia. Humanities and Social Sciences. Bulletin of the Financial University, 2019, 9(5): 39–42. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.26794/2226-7867-2019-9-5-39-42
11. Bystrova A. S. Regional differences in the career trajectories of representatives of the regional political elite of the Russian Federation. Power and Elites, 2023, 10(1): 98–138. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31119/pe.2023.10.1.4
12. Tev D. B. Federal administrative elite of Russia: Features of a career after leaving office. Polis. Political Studies, 2023, (1): 130–146. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2023.01.10
13. Pustovoit Yu. A. How the regime is created: Power coalitions in Siberian cities. Polis. Political Studies, 2019, (4): 104–118. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2019.04.08
14. Cherkasskaya G. V. The quality of the regional elite as a factor of stability of the regional economic system. Regionalnye problemy preobrazovaniya ekonomiki, 2023, (5): 31–39. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.26726/1812-7096-2023-5-31-39
15. Gelman V. Constitution, authoritarianism, and bad governance: The case of Russia. Russian Politics, 2021, 6(1): 71–90. https://doi.org/10.30965/24518921-00601005
16. Miller A. I. Russian federalism and the rehabilitation of the empire. Russia in Global Affairs, 2025, 23(1): 31–42. https://doi.org/10.31278/1810-6374-2025-23-1-31-42
17. Zavershinskiy K. F. "Generations of elites" vs "elite of generations": Communicative dimensions of political elite’s socialization. Power and Elites, 2021, 8(1): 123–147. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31119/pe.2021.8.1.5
18. Kochetkov A. P., Moiseev V. V. Russian political elite as a subject of socioeconomic policy. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filosofiia. Sotsiologiia. Politologiia, 2020, (57): 244–256. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17223/1998863X/57/23
19. Levin S. N., Kislitsyn D. V., Surtseva A. A. Institutional organization of resource-type regions in Russia: General description and structural shift in the economy. Journal of Institutional Studies, 2019, 11(4): 61–76. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17835/2076-6297.2019.11.4.061-076
20. Martianov V. S. Russian elite in search of a nation: Selective memory politics. Discourse-P, 2020, 17(4): 54–67. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/syexdc
21. Shevchenko E. A. Development of interactions of government and business in modern Russia. Ekonomika i upravlenie: problemy, resheniya, 2021, 3(4): 46–51. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.36871/ek.up.p.r.2021.04.03.006
22. Popenko A. V., Slinko A. A. Modern models of interaction between business and government in Russia. Region: Sistemy, ekonomika, upravlenie, 2018, (1): 177–182. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/yvozqq
23. Pyatkov M. O., Chirun S. N. Political dimensions of state-business relations in resource-based regions. Vlast’, 2025, 33(5): 162–169. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24412/2071-5358-2025-5-162-169
24. Chirun S. N. Problems of the functioning of the regional political regime on the example of Kemerovo oblast. Vestnik TGU. Filosofiia. Sotsiologiia. Politologiia, 2018, (44): 253–268. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17223/1998863X/44/24
25. Turovsky R. F., Sukhova M. S. Co-optation of opposition in Russian regional parliaments: Game that breaks rules. Politeia. Analysis. Chronicle. Forecast, 2021, (2): 121–143. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.30570/2078-5089-2021-101-2-121-143
26. Turovsky R. F., Sukhova M. S. Party leaders in the regions of Russia: Analyzing the logic of resignations. Politeia. Analysis. Chronicle. Forecast, 2022, (3): 130–157. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.30570/2078-5089-2022-106-3-130-157
27. Kynev A. The scandalous electoral victory of the governing party United Russia. Euxeinos. Culture and Governance in the Black Sea Region, 2023, 13(35): 8–14. https://doi.org/10.55337/35.exnq9828
28. Palitay I. S. The Russian political elite: Characteristics and dynamics (based on research materials dating from 2011 to 2021). Polis. Political Studies, 2022, (4): 148–160. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2022.04.12
29. Levin S. N., Sablin K. S. Wealth enclaves in the Russian economy: Actors and institutions. Journal of Institutional Studies, 2023, 15(4): 135–147. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17835/2076-6297.2023.15.4.135-147
30. Pyatkov M. O., Chirun S. N. Problems of efficiency of interaction between business structures and state authorities in resource-type regions. Vestnik Bashkir Institute of Social Technologies, 2025, (2): 169–173. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.47598/2078-9025-2025-2-67-169-173
31. Kong L. Federalism: A comprehensive review of its evolution, typologies, and contemporary issues. Encyclopedia, 2025, 5(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/encyclopedia5040156
