‘Qualified people don’t want the job’ Once a coveted prize, Russia’s mayoral posts are now nearly impossible to fill

‘Qualified people don’t want the job’ Once a coveted prize, Russia’s mayoral posts are now nearly impossible to fill

Soon, mayoral elections will be a thing of the past in Russia’s regional capitals. Instead, the authorities have introduced so-called mayoral competitions: candidates submit applications, a selection committee (made up largely of representatives from the regional governor’s office) screens them, and then chooses a winner from among the finalists. But as it turns out, there are few people willing to compete. In Kurgan, for example, the city has b…