The first time the policy Sklyarov had a significant impact Sergei Kiriyenko, and after his resignation from the post of Prime Minister of Russia in the region began to increase the influence of big business.

In 2000, Kstovskiy refinery (NORSI) came under the control of "LUKOIL", the leading petrochemical enterprises of the region included in SIBUR, and the GAZ came under the management of the group "Russian aluminium" Oleg Deripaska.

[1][2][3] The Chairman of the Synodal Commission on the glorification of the saints, Metropolitan Juvenal (Poyarkov) said: "a Politician who calls himself Orthodox, should know what to make of the proposal of canonization is the prerogative only of priests".

[4] Sklyarov was also known for other strange initiatives (for example, was going to apply for carrying out in Nizhni Novgorod the Olympic games or to give the President of the Republic of Tatarstan Kazan icon of the mother of God — a symbol of victory over the Tatars) and meaningless or grammatically incorrect statements[5] was "not sparkling education".

As a result, the 2001 elections with low voter turnout Ivan Sklyarov lost to the member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Gennady Khodyrev.