Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Liberal-Democratic Party (LDPR) head Vladimir Zhirinovsky are the politicians Russians most want to see take part in televised debates ahead of the December elections, an opinion poll said on Wednesday.
According to the leading Russian polling agency VTsIOM, 23 percent of respondents want to see Putin participate, while 17 percent said they hoped to see Zhirinovsky. Only 12 percent said they wanted to see President Dmitry Medvedev in the debates.
The seven registered parties – United Russia, the Communists, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), A Just Russia, Yabloko, A Right Cause and Patriots of Russia – will all receive one free hour of television air time on the state-run TV channels and radio stations ahead of State Duma elections, to be held on December 4.
Parties and regions for State Duma elections
The survey was held on November 5-6 in 46 Russian regions, with a participation of 1,600 people. The margin of error is no more than 3.4%.