Russia's war in Ukraine is increasingly affecting the russian people, forcing the russian presidential administration and the ruling United Russia party to invest in mitigation strategies ahead of the State Duma elections in September 2026.
This is the conclusion of analysts at the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
As analysts note, sources at a major russian news outlet told the russian opposition outlet Meduza on February 20 that the political bloc of the russian presidential administration has instructed news outlets to write more about United Russia ahead of the September 2026 elections.
Putin's administration reportedly has been pushing journalists to promote articles about United Russia, primarily focusing on the party's social initiatives to support families and legislation on housing and healthcare benefits for russian war veterans.
Meduza noted that United Russia is deeply concerned that rising food and utility prices are threatening the party's popularity, and a source in the office of the United Russia presidential representative in the Northwestern Federal District said that United Russia's poll numbers have fallen by an average of 10 percentage points in recent months, and by 13-15 percentage points in St. Petersburg.
"Russia's domestic population is increasingly bearing the economic costs of russia's protracted war in Ukraine, due to the constant rise in food and utility prices, as russian civilians also struggle to afford housing," ISW writes.
United Russia has also reportedly instructed the media to cover the party's procurement and supply of military equipment to the front lines. United Russia's emphasis on the war effort in Ukraine reflects the Kremlin's ongoing efforts to promote the war effort as a marker of national unity.
The russian presidential administration and the United Russia party are spending resources to maintain popularity and control over the domestic situation, even though the results of the 2026 russian State Duma elections are predetermined.
Who we are: About us, Contacts. How we write news and our principles: Editorial code. We did our best. If you found this valuable – please support us.
To request a correction, please send an email.