At the end of February, 90% of Russians knew about the upcoming presidential elections, while about a third of the respondents did not follow the course of the election campaign. Three quarters of Russians were going to take part in the presidential elections. Those who were going to vote were guided by a sense of duty and a desire to support their candidate. The majority of respondents were planning to vote for Vladimir Putin. Also, the majority of respondents had a positive attitude to the three-day and remote voting procedures, citing convenience. However, this was largely determined by the respondent’s general attitude towards the government.
Publications
Protest potential and attitude to protests
Russians believe that mass demonstrations with certain demands are unlikely to be possible in the near future. The respondents are not ready to go out to protest actions, even if they take place. Less than half of the respondents know about the protests of the wives and mothers of the mobilized men.
Savings behavior of Russians in January 2024
The savings attitudes and behavior of Russians have hardly changed in recent months. The number of respondents who do not see changes in their ability to save is growing. The amount of savings is stabilizing. The attractiveness of bank deposits and real estate as an investment asset is growing.
Conflict with Ukraine: estimates of the end of 2023 – beginning of 2024
About half of the respondents follow the Ukrainian events. The level of support for the actions of the Russian armed forces remains high. At the same time, half of the respondents support the idea of peace talks, this figure has slightly decreased compared to November last year. The majority of Russians still believe that the military action will last for a long time: almost half are sure that it will take more than a year. Three quarters believe that the military actions will end with a victory for Russia. On the issue of a possible escalation of the situation into an armed conflict between Russia and NATO, opinions in society today are equally divided, but six months ago such a conflict seemed more likely. About a third of the respondents believe that people like them are morally responsible for what is happening, and this distribution of responses has been maintained for a year and a half. Two thirds of Russians agree that Russia is paying too high a price for participating in a special military operation, but the majority of respondents do not consider its beginning a mistake.
Russians about keeping pets
More than a half of Russians keep pets, only a quarter have never had a family pet. Most often respondents keep cats. Almost all pet owners consider them as members of their family. About a half of the owners picked up their pets. About half of the owners adopted their pets from acquaintances. The average cost of keeping pets is almost 3 thousand rubles per month.
Games Russians Play
The percentage of Russians who play games has increased over 10 years most commonly, respondents play games on a smartphone, cards, chess and checkers. Over 10 years, the share of players of mobile games (on a smartphone) has increased significantly, while the share of computer players is decreasing. In addition, Russians began to play table games and lotteries slightly more frequent.
Mass perception of “foreign agents”: November 2023
Two thirds of Russians know about the law “on foreign agents”. In three years, awareness of this law has increased one and a half times, although most of the respondents still do not have a clear idea about it. At the same time, against the background of the current military conflict over the past two years, the conviction has noticeably strengthened that the law “on foreign agents” is aimed at limiting the negative Western influence on our country. A third of the respondents say that adding a person, media or organization to the register of “foreign agents” will negatively affect the attitude towards them.
Consumer sentiment among Russians in December 2023
By the end of 2023, consumer sentiment had slightly deteriorated. Hopes for the future remain at a high level, but indicators of the current situation – financial condition and readiness for large purchases – turned out to be lower than in October. Concern about consumer prices has grown: Russians are more likely to note their high growth rates and expect further increases. Satisfaction with the general standard of living has also decreased.
Mass estimates of the outgoing year 2023
For the majority of respondents, 2023 turned out to be the same as the previous one. The respondents found the year “more difficult for the country” than for them personally. Two thirds of the respondents rated 2023 as a whole as “average”, one in five – as “good”. At the same time, two thirds called the year “successful for them personally”; this proportion has been increasing for three years.
Societal expectations for 2024
More than half of the respondents hope that the coming year will be better for them than the previous one. Three quarters of respondents look forward to the future with hope. More than half of the respondents fear that the coming year will be more stressful for the Russian economy and political sphere. At the same time, two thirds of respondents believe that the coming year will be more peaceful for them personally.