The prime minister of the Russian Federation, also domestically stylized as the chair of the government of the Russian Federation and widely recognized as the prime minister, is the head of government of Russia and the second highest ranking political office in Russia. Although the post dates back to 1905, its current form was established on 12 December 1993 following the introduction of a new constitution.
Due to the central role of the president of Russia in the political system, the activities of the executive branch (including the prime minister) are significantly influenced by the head of state (for example, it is the president who appoints and dismisses the prime minister and other members of the government; the president may chair the meetings of the cabinet and give obligatory orders to the prime minister and other members of the government; the president may also revoke any act of the government). The use of the term prime minister is strictly informal and is never used in the Russian constitution; however, it exists as the official English translation for the office.
Mikhail Mishustin is the current prime minister. He was appointed on 16 January 2020 after Dmitry Medvedev and the rest of the government resigned the previous day.
Historical background
Imperial period Early Russian prime ministers
Until 1905, the head of government was the emperor. In the absence of the emperor, the ministers one by one, starting with the oldest in the rank, each acted as head of government for four sessions.
In 1810, the chairpersonship was granted to the state chancellor, Count Nikolay Rumyantsev, the former then chairperson of the State Council. Since 1812, as chair of the committee has evolved into an independent position, which until 1865 necessarily coincide with the presidency of the Council of State.
Traditionally, the chairpersonship of the committee was last in the public service honorary position appointed by the dignitaries that have become too old to execution of the duties of the minister. A number of committee chairpersons (especially duke Alexander Chernyshyov, count Alexey F. Orlov, count Dmitry Bludov) was characterized by contemporaries as "barely alive", "miserable". Count Modest Korf jokingly wrote about count Chernyshov: "Look, just live!" Duke Pavel Gagarin died in office at the age of 83 years.
1905–1917
The modern post of prime minister appeared in 1905. A decree of Emperor Nicholas II on 19 October 1905 established the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire, bringing together the Ministers in one Cabinet (previously each Minister had reported directly to the Emperor on the affairs of their department). The Chairperson of the Council of Ministers officially became a fully-fledged head of government. Nicholas appointed Graf Sergei Witte as his first "prime minister".
From 1905 the prime minister received extensive powers, with the opportunity to pursue their own policies and reforms. Pyotr Stolypin (in office: 1906–1911) gained a reputation as one of the strongest prime ministers—during his premiership he made several major (though controversial) reforms.
Though the Russian Constitution of 1906 established the State Duma (a representative house of parliament), the Government was not responsible to it. Although Sergei Witte and Pyotr Stolypin (at the beginning of his Premiership) each tried to form a coalition government of the largest political organizations, they did not succeed. The State Duma nevertheless tried to gain influence over the government. Conflict between the State Duma and the government became particularly evident during the first Premiership of Ivan Goremykin in 1906.
The position of Chair of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire lasted 12 years; during this time seven people took this post (one twice). The position lapsed after the February Revolution of March 1917, following the abdication of Nicholas II from the throne on and the formation that same day of the Provisional Government.
Provisional Government
During the Russian Provisional Government, the prime minister de facto headed the Russian state and was officially called the “Minister-Chairperson of the Russian Provisional Government". This position was held by only two people, Georgy Lvov and Alexander Kerensky.
The position lasted about six months, and after the October Revolution, was replaced by Chairperson of the Council of People's Commissars of the Russian SFSR.
Soviet period During the reign of Vladimir Lenin, the Chairperson of the Council of People's Commissars was the de facto leader of the RSFSR (from 1922 to 1991).
In 1946, the post of head of government was renamed Chairperson of the Council of Ministers. People who held those positions are sometimes referred to as the prime ministers. They may have also been referred to as premier of ministers, or simply premier.
Post-Soviet period
Currently, the formal title of the prime minister is "Chairperson of the Government of the Russian Federation".
In modern Russia, the prime minister is appointed by the president, with the consent of the State Duma. The prime minister is responsible to the president and regularly reports to them, however, they only report to the State Duma once a year.
After the election of Boris Yeltsin, President of Russia, the head of the government was Yeltsin himself. He headed the Russian SFSR Government (16 May 1992, the Government of the Russian Federation) for about six months. In fact, Yeltsin was the first Head of Government of Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union; however, he was not the prime minister. After Yeltsin, Yegor Gaidar became acting prime minister, but the Russian Supreme Soviet refused to approve him as prime minister. On 14 December 1992, the prime minister appointed was Viktor Chernomyrdin.
The Russian political system is similar to the modern French system. In order to appoint the prime minister the president needs a majority in the state Duma. If the president's party does not have the majority and fails to form a coalition, the president may need to appoint a loyalist to the position of prime minister. For example, this occurred in 1998 when the State Duma (which had most of the opposition to the president's party) twice refused to appoint Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, and Boris Yeltsin appointed Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov, who supported the left opposition.
In the mid-1990s in Russia there was a term "technical prime minister". This term refers to the prime minister, who is not an independent political figure, is only the nominal head of government, and in fact the activities of the government are headed by the president.
Duties and competences
In general, the prime minister serves more of an administrative role, nominating members of the Cabinet and taking the lead in fully implementing domestic and foreign policy as formulated by the president. In accordance with the federal constitutional law "On the Government of the Russian Federation" the prime minister exercises the following duties:
determines the operating priorities of the government and organizes its work in accordance with the Constitution, federal constitutional laws, federal laws and presidential decrees, aside from running the day-to-day affairs of the government, in general. submits to the president proposals on the structure and functions of the central institutions of the executive branch (e.g. ministries and federal agencies); nominates the vice prime ministers, federal ministers and other officers and presents them to the president; submits to the president proposals on punishment and rewards of the government members; represents the government as an institution in foreign relations and inside the country; heads the sessions of the government and its Presidium where they have the decisive vote; signs the acts of the government; report annually to the State Duma about the government activities; distributes duties among members of the government; systematically informs the president about the government activities;
The prime minister is ex officio a member of:
The Security Council of the Russian Federation; The Council of the Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Independent States; The Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus; The Council of the Heads of Government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization; The Eurasian Intergovernmental Council of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU);
Appointment
Initially, the prime minister was appointed by the Emperor of Russia, without the consent of the candidate to the State Duma.
In Soviet times, the prime minister of the Russian SFSR was appointed by the Supreme Council after each election.
Currently the prime minister is appointed by the president of Russia, subject to the consent of the State Duma (before 1993 the Supreme Soviet). Unlike most other "prime ministers", who are also elected members of the legislative body or parliament, the Chairperson of the Government of Russia can be any Russian citizen, as long as they do not also hold citizenship of another country.
Under law, the president shall nominate a new Chairperson of the Government within two weeks of the resignation of a previous government or inauguration ceremony of president. The State Duma is to discuss the matter within two weeks of the nomination and make a decision. The procedure of granting consent by the parliament is usually preceded by several days of comprehensive consultations and interviews of the candidate by the parliamentary factions. Should the State Duma decide to give the president its approval, the president may immediately sign the respective appointment decree. Should the State Duma refuse to give its approval, the president will have to nominate another (or the same) candidate within one week of the rejection of the previous candidate. However, in the event that the Duma rejects the president's appointment to prime minister three times, they may dissolve the Duma, call for new elections and appoint a candidate for prime minister without its consent.
Should the State Duma reject candidates nominated by the president for three times consecutively, the president can (but is not required to after the passage of the 2020 amendments to the Constitution) dissolve it and call a new election, while the prime minister shall be appointed by the president without participation of the Duma. The State Duma may not be dissolved on these grounds during the first year after parliamentary elections, the last six months of the incumbent president's term, as well as in time of emergency, or war and in the event that the State Duma has initiated the impeachment of the incumbent president.
Results of confirmations voting
CandidateDateTotal deputiesYesNoAbstainingNo voteResultSupreme Soviet confirmationsYegor Gaidar9 December 1992104046744.9%4862661Not approvedViktor Chernomyrdin14 December 1992104072169.3%172481ApprovedState Duma confirmationsViktor Chernomyrdin10 August 199644331470.9%85348ApprovedSergey Kirienko10 April 199844314332.3%1865116Not approved17 April 199844311525.9%27111153Not approved24 April 199844325156.7%2539135ApprovedViktor Chernomyrdin31 August 19984439421.2%253098Not approved7 September 199844313831.2%273132Not approvedYevgeny Primakov11 September 199844331771.6%631549ApprovedSergei Stepashin19 May 199944330167.9%551470ApprovedVladimir Putin16 August 199944323352.6%8417105ApprovedMikhail Kasyanov17 May 200044132572.7%551552ApprovedMikhail Fradkov5 March 200444535279.1%582413Approved12 May 200444535680%72811ApprovedViktor Zubkov14 September 200744538185.6%4789ApprovedVladimir Putin8 May 200845039287.1%5600ApprovedDmitry Medvedev8 May 201245029966.4%14400Approved8 May 201844637483.9%56014ApprovedMikhail Mishustin16 January 202044938304125Approved10 May 202444937505718Approved
Removal from office