Socialist Political Party "A Just Russia – Patriots – For Truth" (SRZP), officially abbreviated as A Just Russia – For Truth, is a
social conservative
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...
and
social-democratic
Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, socia ...
political party in Russia. The party is considered to be part of the "
systemic opposition" and is generally sympathetic to the agenda of incumbent president
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
, including his foreign policy.
The party was formed on 28 October 2006 as a merger of the left-wing factions of
Rodina, the
Russian Party of Life and the
Russian Pensioners' Party. Later, six further minor parties joined.
It then called for a "
New Socialism of the 21st Century" which guarantees the rights and freedoms of the individual and ensures the proper functioning of a
welfare state
A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...
. In 2011,
Nikolai Levichev was elected as party chairman, succeeding
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
who led the party between 2006 and 2011. On 27 October 2013, Mironov was re-elected as party chairman, and again on 28 October 2018. On 28 January 2021, the party merged with the
For Truth and
Patriots of Russia
Patriots of Russia (, ) was a left-wing political party in Russia. It was established in April 2005 by Gennady Semigin, who was expelled from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation after he failed in a power struggle with Gennady Zyugan ...
parties.
History
Name
* : A Just Russia: Motherland/Pensioners/Life ()
* : A Just Russia ()
* since : Socialist Political Party "A Just Russia – Patriots – For Truth" ()
Establishment
On 26 March 2006, the deputy head of the presidential administration,
Vladislav Surkov
Vladislav Yuryevich Surkov (; born 21 September 1964) is a Russian politician and businessman. He was First Deputy Chief of the Russian Presidential Administration from 1999 to 2011, during which time he was often viewed as the main ideologis ...
, met with
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
, then the party leader of the
Party of Life, and 30 deputies from the party, where Surkov formulated the idea of building a two-party system in the country, in which the Kremlin could rely on one of two parties, the other being the ruling party,
United Russia
The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...
. Surkov stated: "Society has no 'second leg' to step on when the first one is numb. In Russia, a second large party is needed". Surkov suggested that the role of the "main leg" would be left to United Russia for the near future. In the meeting, Surkov also noted that in the
2003 legislative elections, United Russia received about 37% of the vote, which was about the same as the next three parties, the
Communist Party, the
Liberal Democratic Party
Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...
, and
Rodina, and said that ideally, the "second leg" should have the same level of electoral support as the three parties.
According to researcher Luke March, a second party of power would incentivize United Russia to perform well, or strong performance for A Just Russia would have "Putin's influence spread all over the political field", quoting political commentator
Sergei Markov.
A Just Russia formed on 28 October 2006 as a merger of three parties, namely
Rodina, the
Russian Party of Life and the
Russian Pensioners' Party. Of these, the nationalist Rodina was the largest, having won 9% of the popular vote in the
2003 Duma elections. At the time of the merger, Rodina had 37 seats in the Duma. The Party of Pensioners had gained 3% of the vote, failing to cross the 5% election threshold and also been weakened by infighting in its leadership. The
social-democratic
Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, socia ...
Party of Life led by
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
was still relatively young and had won only one regional election.
As the only party of the three with seats in the Duma, Rodina dominated the unification process. In simultaneous conventions held in
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
on 26 August 2006, the Party of Life and the Party of Pensioners decided to join Rodina.
Two months later on 28 October 2006, the new party held its founding congress which decided to change the party's name to A Just Russia.
[History](_blank)
A Just Russia Mironov was elected the unified party's chairman while Rodina's former chairman
Alexander Babakov
Alexander Mikhailovich Babakov (; 8 February 1963) is a Russian politician and member of the State Duma, the Russian parliament. He was appointed Special Presidential Representative to Russians by Vladimir Putin in 2012.
He has been under EU, Can ...
became the secretary of the central council presidium and the leader of the Party of Pensioners
Igor Zotov became secretary of the political council.
[A Fair and Just Russia The Political Platform of Russia's Social Democrats Part 1: Philosophy and the Current State of Russia](_blank)
The School of Russian and Asian Studies. Archived 20 July 2018. The next year, A Just Russia expanded further, absorbing three additional small parties in 2007, namely the
People's Party, the
Party of Entrepreneurship Development and the
Party of Constitutional Democrats.

At the party's founding convention, chairman Sergey Mironov expressed support for the direction given to the country by President
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
, claiming that "we will not allow anyone to veer from it after Putin leaves his post in 2008". At the same time, he harshly criticised Putin's party
United Russia
The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...
and what Mironov called the largest party's "monopoly" of the nation's political, economic and administrative resources.
Mironov characterised A Just Russia as a new "leftist political force" and a "hard opposition", saying that "if United Russia is the party of power, we will become the party of the people".
[New 'Just Russia' Party Says Putin Knows Best](_blank)
St Petersburg Times, 31 October 2006
First election successes

Shortly after its creation, A Just Russia participated in its first elections when the party's candidate won the mayoral race in
Samara
Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...
. The March 2007 regional elections were dominated by United Russia, but A Just Russia also put up a strong performance. In particular, the new party won a majority in the regional parliament in
Stavropol Krai.
[Sakwa 2011, p.66]
The emergence of A Just Russia changed Russia's political landscape and demonstrated that the country's leadership had been split between two parties. United Russia supporters in the presidential administration grew wary of the challenge posed by A Just Russia, worrying that United Russia would lose its position as "the president's party". Before the
2007 Duma elections, the Kremlin had withdrawn its support of A Just Russia and threw its weight entirely behind United Russia.
In a press conference on 19 January 2007 dedicated to upcoming Duma elections, Secretary of the Central Party Council of A Just Russia
Alexander Babakov
Alexander Mikhailovich Babakov (; 8 February 1963) is a Russian politician and member of the State Duma, the Russian parliament. He was appointed Special Presidential Representative to Russians by Vladimir Putin in 2012.
He has been under EU, Can ...
announced that the party had approximately 300,000 members.
[Alexander Babakov: The party numbers around 300,000](_blank)
A Just Russia, 22 January 2007
In May 2007, A Just Russia's chairman
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
proposed a merger between his party and the
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; ) is a communist political party in Russia that officially adheres to Marxist–Leninist philosophy. It is the second-largest political party in Russia after United Russia. The youth o ...
in order to create a new unified
socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
party.
2007 Duma elections

In the run-up to the December
2007 Duma elections, President
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
– the country's most popular politician – explicitly and unequivocally endorsed the
United Russia
The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...
party and decided to head its national list. Putin's decision significantly changed the election campaign and resulted in a massive boost to United Russia's popularity. This represented a harsh blow to A Just Russia which also had hoped to ride on Putin's popularity. Polls suggested the party could have difficulties crossing the 7% election threshold.
[Sakwa 2011, p. 248]
A Just Russia appointed three persons to its national list, namely chairman
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
;
Svetlana Goryacheva (a former member of the
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; ) is a communist political party in Russia that officially adheres to Marxist–Leninist philosophy. It is the second-largest political party in Russia after United Russia. The youth o ...
); and
Sergey Shargunov, a 27-year-old fiction author. In its regional lists, A Just Russia had 553 candidates, taking its total number of candidates to 556. This was more than the Communists (515), but less than United Russia (600). Although originally positioned as a
centre-left
Centre-left politics is the range of left-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. Ideologies commonly associated with it include social democracy, social liberalism, progressivism, and green politics. Ideas commo ...
party, under Mironov's leadership A Just Russia campaigned as a socialist alternative to the Communists.
In the end, A Just Russia received 5,383,639 votes (7.74%), becoming the fourth party to cross the 7% election threshold and enter the Duma after United Russia, the Communists and the
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia
LDPR – Liberal Democratic Party of Russia () is a Russian Ultranationalism, ultranationalist and Right-wing populism, right-wing populist List of political parties in Russia, political party. It succeeded the Liberal Democratic Party of the ...
. As a result, A Just Russia got 38 of the 450 seats (8.4%) in the Duma.
[Final Result of the Duma Election, 2 December 2007](_blank)
Levada Center The party received its highest share of votes in
Astrakhan
Astrakhan (, ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the Caspian Depression, from the Caspian Se ...
(20%),
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
(16%) and
Stavropol
Stavropol (, ), known as Voroshilovsk from 1935 until 1943, is a city and the administrative centre of Stavropol Krai, in southern Russia. As of the 2021 Census, its population was 547,820, making it one of Russia's fastest growing cities.
E ...
(13%). In Saint Petersburg, the hometown of chairman Mironov, A Just Russia became the second largest party. Mironov said he would not take up his seat in the Duma himself, but instead continue as the Chairman of the
Federation Council
The Federation Council, unofficially Senate, is the upper house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, with the lower house being the State Duma. It was established by the Constitution of the Russian Federation in 1993.
Each of the 89 federal s ...
.
A Just Russia's performance in the elections was a slight disappointment, especially since one of its predecessor parties,
Rodina, had won 9% of the votes in the
2003 elections.
Post-election
On 10 December 2007, A Just Russia was part of a coalition of parties which nominated
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
as their candidate for the
2008 presidential elections.
On 25 April 2008, A Just Russia held its third annual congress, where the party expelled thousands of members who were not aware that they were members. The party's charter was amended at the congress to make mergers easier. The congress also disbanded the party's
politburo
A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...
and transferred its functions to the Central Council. Politburo's chairman
Nikolai Levichev, who also heads A Just Russia's faction in the
State Duma
The State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly (Russia), Federal Assembly of Russia, with the upper house being the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council. It was established by the Constitution of Russia, Constitution of t ...
, was elected as the council's first secretary.
During its XXIII Congress On 30 June 2008, A Just Russia was accepted into the
Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism, consisting mostly of Social democracy, social democratic political parties and Labour mov ...
, the worldwide organisation of social-democratic political parties.
The
United Socialist Party of Russia
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
and the
Russian Ecological Party "The Greens"
The Russian Ecological Party "The Greens" (REP "The Greens"; ) is a green political party in the Russian Federation. It was founded in 1992 as the Constructive-Ecological Movement of Russia "Kedr" (KEDR; ). In 2002 the party was transformed int ...
merged into the party in 2008.
In the 2007–2011 State Duma, A Just Russia became a strong supporter of the
Medvedev modernisation programme
The Medvedev modernisation programme was an initiative launched by President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev in 2009, which aimed at modernising Economy of Russia, Russia's economy and society, decreasing the country's dependency on oil and gas revenu ...
, endorsing President
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
's view that Russia must move towards a diversified
post-industrial economy
A post-industrial economy is a period of growth within an industrialized economy or nation in which the relative importance of manufacturing reduces and that of services, information, and research grows.
Such economies are often marked by a dec ...
and democratisation of its political system. A Just Russia also advocated restoration of direct gubernatorial elections and lowering the Duma election threshold from 7% to 3%. A Just Russia voted against Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
's anti-crisis plan in April 2009 and also voted against the governments budgets in 2010 and 2011. According to researcher Luke March, in the
2007–2011 Duma A Just Russia clearly moved towards Medvedev. The party has declared absolute opposition to Putin's government while remaining supportive of Medvedev.
On 2 February 2010, Mironov told talk show host
Vladimir Pozner Jr.
Vladimir Vladimirovich Pozner (; born 1 April 1934) is a French-born Russian-American journalist and presenter.
He is best known in the Western world, West for his television appearances representing and explaining the views of the Soviet Uni ...
that "to say that we support Vladimir Putin in everything and personally is already outdated information", noting that the party "categorically opposed" Putin's budget. A scandal broke out with the ruling party, leading to A Just Russia and United Russia to sign a political agreement to jointly support Putin and Medvedev on certain strategic issues and agreeing to discuss disagreements between them.
However, A Just Russia withdrew from the agreement a month later, with Mironov accusing United Russia of violating the agreement.
In March 2011, Mironov stated that the party would not support United Russia's candidate for the next presidential election, and that it would decide on its nomination later in the autumn. At the party congress on 16 April 2011,
Nikolai Levichev was elected party leader after Mironov was removed from the position. In May 2011, Mironov was removed from his position of
Chairman of the Federation Council.
In August 2011, the party published its manifesto, announcing its transition to full opposition to the authorities.
2011 Duma elections
In the
2011 legislative elections, the party received 13% of the vote, extending its number of seats to 64.
Following reports of
electoral fraud
Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud, or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share o ...
at the election, party members joined in
post-election protests against the results.
Gennady Gudkov, a party heavyweight and deputy, was prominent at the demonstrations. Senior party members took part in demonstrations at
Bolotnaya Square on 10 December, among them Gudkov and
Oksana Dmitriyeva
Oksana Genrikhovna Dmitriyeva (; born 3 April 1958) is a Russian politician and economist, who currently serves as a deputy of the State Duma since 2021, having previously served in the position from 1993 to 2016. A former government minister in ...
.
2012 presidential election
Mironov was nominated as the party's candidate for the
2012 presidential election
This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*3–4 January: ...
. Mironov stated that he would "enter the race not to participate, but to win", and also promised to nominate
Oksana Dmitriyeva
Oksana Genrikhovna Dmitriyeva (; born 3 April 1958) is a Russian politician and economist, who currently serves as a deputy of the State Duma since 2021, having previously served in the position from 1993 to 2016. A former government minister in ...
as prime minister if elected.
Mironov called for a return to a
socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
model of government. While he stated that he predicted a Putin victory, he declared that he would support
Gennady Zyuganov
Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov (; born 26 June 1944) is a Russian politician who has been the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and served as Member of the State Duma since 1993. He is also the Chair of the Union ...
in a hypothetical runoff against Putin. According to election results, Mironov came in last place, with 3.85% of the vote.
Post-election
On 22 May 2012, during a State Duma session where a bill was being considered to increase fines for those who violated protest laws, Mironov wore a
white ribbon
The white ribbon is an awareness ribbon sometimes used by political movements to signify or spread their beliefs. It is usually worn on garments or represented in information sources such as posters, leaflets, etc.
The White Ribbon has been ...
, a symbol that was being used by the anti-Kremlin opposition in
protests
A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...
against Putin's re-election, and the party remained silent in the discussion of the bill as a sign of protest. Mironov stated that the party "fundamentally disagrees with the content of the bill".
On 27 October 2012, Mironov called on members to stop wearing the white ribbon, the day after a United Russia deputy, Alexander Sidyakin, branded deputies who wore it as "traitors" and stomped on a white ribbon. Mironov urged members to distance themselves from the opposition, claiming that the rallies turned into a "political sect". He also threatened to expel
Ilya Ponomaryov and Gudkov from the party for joining the opposition's
Coordination Council. Ponomaryov and Gudkov were also among the deputies who were branded as traitors by Sidyakin. From 2012, members of the party who actively took part in protests left or were expelled from the party, including Gudkov and Ponomaryov. Dmitriyeva also distanced herself from the party.
In October 2013, Mironov was elected as party leader and in 2014, A Just Russia, along with United Russia, the Communist Party, and the Liberal Democratic Party, supported Putin's foreign policy following the
Annexation of Crimea, and much of his domestic policy.
2016 Duma elections
In the
2016 legislative elections, A Just Russia received 6% of the vote, losing most of its seats and retaining only 23 seats.
2018 presidential election
In December 2017, Mironov outlined the party's new tasks, choosing not to participate in the
2018 presidential election due to his unwillingness to fight "for second place". Instead, the party would endorse Putin and work to limit the influence of United Russia on the agenda of Putin. Mironov stated that A Just Russia was, is, and will be in opposition to United Russia, but that it could not be "in opposition to Russia herself". Mironov also proposed "to honestly tell voters" that there was no "worthy alternative" to Putin.
RBC reported that, according to sources close to the party's leadership, Mironov's unwillingness to participate in the election was due to fatigue and financial difficulties.
2021 Duma elections
Ahead of the
2021 legislative elections, A Just Russia merged with the parties
Patriots of Russia
Patriots of Russia (, ) was a left-wing political party in Russia. It was established in April 2005 by Gennady Semigin, who was expelled from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation after he failed in a power struggle with Gennady Zyugan ...
and
For Truth in January 2021, forming A Just Russia – Patriots – For Truth.
Mironov remained party leader, and according to their unification manifesto, the party would run on "12 principles of truth, patriotism and justice", including "strengthening the role of the state in the economy, developing a progressive taxation scale, toughening punishments for corruption, increasing the minimum wage, pensions and social benefits, phasing out of the high school state exams and budget decentralization". The party also reportedly planned to come in second place in the election, after United Russia, but eventually came third, after United Russia and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.
Post-election
In February 2022, the party voted in favour of the recognition of the
Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic (DPR; , ) is Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupied territory in Ukraine that the Russian Federation has claimed to annex and declared as a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia, comprising parts o ...
and the
Luhansk People's Republic
The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR; , ) is a disputed territory administered as a republic of Russia in the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast, with its capital in Luhansk. The LPR was proclaimed by Russian-backed paramilitar ...
by the
Russian Federation
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and later it supported the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. As a result of these announcements, A Just Russia – For Truth was expelled from the
Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism, consisting mostly of Social democracy, social democratic political parties and Labour mov ...
in March 2022.
In July 2022, the leader of the
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; ) is a communist political party in Russia that officially adheres to Marxist–Leninist philosophy. It is the second-largest political party in Russia after United Russia. The youth o ...
,
Gennady Zyuganov
Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov (; born 26 June 1944) is a Russian politician who has been the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and served as Member of the State Duma since 1993. He is also the Chair of the Union ...
proposed a merging with A Just Russia – For Truth, but only if that party adopted the Communist programme. The day before, the leader of the A Just Russia
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
said that he "does not see any obstacles to the creation in Russia of a large coalition of left-wing patriotic forces".
Membership
In 2012, the party claimed to have 400,000 members and claimed to be the largest
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...
party in Russia. It has regional branches in all
federal subjects of Russia
The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation () or simply as the subjects of the federation (), are the administrative division, constituent entities of Russia, its top-level political division ...
.
Ideology and platform
A Just Russia calls for the creation of a
welfare state
A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...
with less
economic inequality, but protecting individual
property rights
The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership), is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their Possession (law), possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely ...
and maintaining a
market economy
A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production, and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand. The major characteristic of a mark ...
. Under the leadership of
Sergey Mironov
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov (; born 14 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He served as Chairman of the Federation Council (Russia), Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia, Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliam ...
, the party has presented itself as a socialist alternative to the
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; ) is a communist political party in Russia that officially adheres to Marxist–Leninist philosophy. It is the second-largest political party in Russia after United Russia. The youth o ...
,
and describes its ideology as "New Socialism of the 21st century". In the party platform, this "New Socialism" is defined as the antithesis of "barbarous, oligarchic capitalism". It represents a more
individualist
Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...
or
liberal socialism
Liberal socialism is a political philosophy that incorporates Liberalism, liberal principles to socialism. This synthesis sees liberalism as the political theory that takes the inner freedom of the human spirit as a given and adopts liberty a ...
.
[A Fair and Just Russia. The Political Platform of Russia's Social Democrats Part 2: The Individual & Government](_blank)
The School of Russian and Asian Studies. Archived 27 July 2018.
Improving the socio-economic position of the average Russian is the party's primary aim. It wishes to replace Russia's 13%
flat-rate income tax with
progressive taxation
A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases. The term ''progressive'' refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer's average tax rate is less than the ...
and demands that spending on employment programmes is increased to 1% of GDP.
In the State Duma, the party emphasises its role as "constructive opposition" that opposes high-level corruption and supports further democratisation of the political system. In the
2007–2011 Duma, A Just Russia declared absolute opposition to Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
's government, voting against the government's budgets in 2010 and 2011 while remaining strongly supportive of President
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
and his
modernisation programme.
Despite such position, A Just Russia endorsed Putin in the
2018 Russian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Russia on 18 March 2018. Incumbent president Vladimir Putin was eligible to run. He declared his intent to do so on 6 December 2017 and was expected to win. This came following several months of speculation t ...
.
In Russia's international relations, A Just Russia proposes moving away from the
Western sphere and strengthening relations between the
former Soviet states
The post-Soviet states, also referred to as the former Soviet Union or the former Soviet republics, are the independent sovereign states that emerged/re-emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Prior to their independence, they ...
. The party opposes so-called "western" ideas such as
LGBT rights
Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...
.
Two of its deputies,
Gennady Nosovko and
Dmitry Gorovtchov,
have on multiple occasions, at least in 2014,
2015,
if not in 2012 and 2018 and 2022,
proposed a bill that would unfetter mercenaries, who would be able "to provide armed escort of ships; train security forces; assist with mine clearing, protection of officials and facilities; take part in alternative settlement of armed conflicts" and more besides according to the 2014 bill, which would put them under the supervision of the
Federal Security Service
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation �СБ, ФСБ России (FSB) is the principal security agency of Russia and the main successor agency to the Soviet Union's KGB; its immediate predecessor was the Federal Counterin ...
.
[
]
Chairmen
A Just Russia
A Just Russia – For Truth
International cooperation
A Just Russia used to be a full member of the Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism, consisting mostly of Social democracy, social democratic political parties and Labour mov ...
, but on 7 March 2022 the party was expelled for its support of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
.
It also maintains friendly relations with Latin America
Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
n left-wing political parties. A Just Russia repeatedly sent greetings to annual meetings of São Paulo Forum
São Paulo Forum (FSP), also known as the Foro de São Paulo, is a conference of left-wing political parties and organizations from the Americas, primarily Latin America and the Caribbean. It was launched by the Workers' Party () of Brazil in 19 ...
.
Electoral results
Presidential
State Duma
Mergers
The following parties have merged into A Just Russia. The dates in brackets show when the merger took place and when it ended.
* Patriots of Russia
Patriots of Russia (, ) was a left-wing political party in Russia. It was established in April 2005 by Gennady Semigin, who was expelled from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation after he failed in a power struggle with Gennady Zyugan ...
(January 2021)
* For Truth (January 2021)
* Party of Social Justice (September 2008)
* United Socialist Party of Russia
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
(May 2007)
* People's Party of the Russian Federation
The People's Party of the Russian Federation was a centrist political party in Russia. The leader of the party was Gennady Raikov.
History
Before official registration of the People's Party on 29 September 2001, the "People's Deputy" group ...
(April 2007)
* Party of Entrepreneurship Development (2007)
* Party of Constitutional Democrats (2007)
* The Greens The Greens or Greens may refer to:
Current political parties
*The Greens – The Green Alternative, Austria
*Australian Greens, also known as ''The Greens''
* Greens of Andorra
* The Greens (Benin)
*The Greens (Bulgaria)
* Greens of Bosnia and He ...
(June 2009 – February 2012; re-established as an independent party in 2012)
* Rodina (October 2006 – September 2012; re-established as an independent party in 2012)
* Russian Pensioners' Party (October 2006 – April 2012; re-established as an independent party in 2012)
* Russian Party of Life (October 2006)
Notes
References
Literature
*
*
External links
*
*
Website of Moscow oblast regional committee
A Just Russia prepares the International day of the UN
on the website of the WSIS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Just Russia
Registered political parties in Russia
Political parties established in 2006
2006 establishments in Russia
Centrist parties in Russia
Centre-left parties in Europe
Conservative parties in Russia
Social conservative parties
Social democratic parties in Russia
Former member parties of the Socialist International
Democratic socialist parties in Europe
Organizations that oppose LGBTQ rights in Russia