1. Russia: Citizens, Society, and The State
AP Comparative government

2. Nationality
There are many societal cleavages that greatly impact policymaking. These cleavages include:
Nationality, religion, social class, and rural v. urban divisions
Nationality is one of the main cleavages in Russia.
80% of the Russian population is identified as being Russian
20% however are identified as Tatars, Ukrainians, Armenians, Chuvash's, Bashkis, Byelorussians, and Moldavians.
Due to these differences in nationality, Russia was formed into a federation with autonomous regions
These regions are republics with borders based upon ethnicity
Many of these regions would like to have independence but beneficial trade partnerships push them to stay
In 2004 Chechnya tried to fight for independence (clarify this)
Russia was able to keep them in the Russian Federation by writing a new constitution but the relationship is still touchy

4. Religion Under Tsarist rule, Russia was extremely Russian Orthodox
Under Soviet rule, religious practices of all kinds were banned
With the establishment of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin encouraged the Russian Orthodox Church to reestablish itself
While the Orthodox Church has reestablished itself, and many Russians identify themselves as Russian Orthodox, very few people actually attend church
In 2007 the Russian Church Abroad and the Russian Orthodox Church reunited showing greater acceptance of religion within the country

5. Religion and Ethnic Groups in Russia
Russian Orthodox 15-20%
Russian 79.8%
Muslim 10-15%
Tatar 3.8%
Other Christian 2%
Ukrainian 2%
Chuvash 1.1%
Note: estimates are of practicing worshipers: Russian has large numbers of non-practice believers and non-believers, a legacy of soviet rule
Other 12.1%

6. Religion
Russia has the greatest concentration of Muslims in Europe, with the exception of Turkey
Muslims are generally located in Moscow
They form a large share of laborers
The Caucasus
This area is between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea
This is the region where the Chechens have been controlled
This region has a tendency for violence
Bashkortostan and Tatarstan
These tend to be the calmest of regions for Muslim/Russian relations

7. Social Class
With the fall of the Soviet Union the entrepreneur class began to rise
This class has been pushed by Yeltsin and Putin, who have granted large favors to the class of citizens

8. Rural v Urban
73% of the Russian population lives in cities in the western portion of the country
There is a wide economic gap between those in the cities and those in the country
Citizens in the cities tend to be wealthier, better educated and more in touch with western culture

9. Beliefs and attitudes
The concept of Marxism, which was based on the idea that the industrialized west would eventually fall, led to strong nationalism
The belief that their society would out last all others lead many to buy into the Marxist system
Stalinism tried to strengthen these concepts through internal development
When the USSR fell, it brought a tide of changing attitudes to Russia

10. Beliefs and attitudes Mistrust of government- Statism-
Most do not trust government officials or institutions
People support democratic ideals of free elections and wide spread individual civil liberties and rights, but don’t trust officials to institute those policies
There is also very little political participation because of this mistrust
Statism-
Russian citizens believe the state should take an active role in their lives
Russians expect a great deal from their government because of their history as subjects, rather than as participants

11. Beliefs and attitudes Economic Beliefs- Westernization
Economic beliefs are separated by those who support old style Soviet tactics and those who support a market style economy
This argument is generally made amongst generational lines
Westernization
Slavophile v westernizer

12. Political Participation
Early in Russian voting history, close to 100% of the citizens voted for their leader
These elections were not free and competitive, and those who did not vote faced strict consequences
Gorbachev instituted competitive elections, but it was between people from the same party with similar attitudes
This effectively gave the citizens no choice in their leader
Voter turnout rates have dropped since the establishment of the Russian Federation in 1991
During the election of 1991, 75% of eligible citizens voted
In 2004 less than 64.3% of citizens voted
In 2008 it was 69.7%
In 2012 it was 62.5%

13. Civil Society
There is very little form of political participation within the society
This is due to a relatively undeveloped civil society
Most Russians don’t attend church
Most also do not belong to sports leagues, literary or cultural groups, charitable organizations, or labor unions
Only 1% of people belong to a political party
Much of civil society was demolished with the start of the Soviet Union
The state setup a state corporatist arrangement where the government could control the voice of the people

14. Russian Youth Groups The Nashi is a youth movement created by Putin
It is a group designed to build a following of loyal, and patriotic young people who would support the state