Russians will have free elections and western cooperation

Perestrojka 2.0 on the horizon?

According to VG Experts interpret the figures as a clear indication that the population wants change – and that the Kremlin’s tale of the people’s support does not hold water.

74 percent say yes to cooperation with the West, 89 percent will have freedom of expression, and a full 95 percent support religious freedom. At the same time, three out of four Russians want free elections.

These are numbers that stick to the eyes of a country where power is concentrated on one man: Vladimir Putin. He has been the president of Russia – more or less uninterrupted – since the year 2000 and was most recently « re -elected » in 2024 in an election that the West called neither free nor fair.

According to the Inna Sangadzhieva of the Helsing Committee, the measurement sends a strong signal. She even grew up under the Soviet Union and was a child when Gorbatsjov’s reform wave, known as « Perestrojka », rolled in over the country:

« It is an important signal that we must be ready for a ‘Perestrojka 2.0’, » she tells VG. She was even so surprised by the numbers that she thought for a moment they originated from 1985.

According to her, the measurement shows that the future dreams of the Russians are moving in a different direction than the regime. « It gives hope, » she says, comparing the mood with time up to the collapse of the Soviet Union.