The potential for economically motivated protests – the case of today’s Russian Federation

Abstract

The activities of the Russian political opposition have been significantly limited after the mass protests at the turn of 2011 and 2012. Numerous changes in the law resulted in a significant decrease in the number of entities that could continue opposition activity in the sphere of politics. At the same time, the deepening economic crisis and the deteriorating economic situation of the broad masses of Russians revealed a hitherto undeveloped space where the dissatisfaction of Russian citizens with the actions of the authorities began to be manifested in recent months. This paper aims to analyze the current socio-economic situation of the Russian Federation and indicate the possible manifestations of the economically motivated protests by Russians. The analysis will be based on macroeconomic indicators, the results of research into Russian public opinion and an analysis of information on the potential protests published in the Russian media (mostly social media). As a result, the paper may form a contribution to the discussion on the potential relationship between the lack of stability in such matters as the sense of economic and social security and the propensity to participate in protests against the government.