[4] In his first term as president Putin had overseen an upswing in the economic fortunes of Russia, giving him a strong level of public approval.

[4] Even before the legislative elections, observers had considered Russian politics to be more dominated by Putin than it had been by any individual since the fall of the Soviet Union.

[3] With Putin consistently leading in the polls by approximately 60%, most prominent opposition figures signaled their intent to forgo competing in the elections.

[5] By sacking Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov during the campaign, Putin allowed for Russian political news coverage during the last three weeks of the election campaign to be preoccupied in reporting on the transition from the Kasyanov Cabinet to the Fradkov Cabinet, further depriving his opponents of media coverage.

[6] These were to improve Russia's quality of life, provide economic growth, integrate Russia into the global economy, undertake governmental reform (reducing the functions of the state government and the number of officials), health care reform, education reform, protecting the democratic rights and freedoms of Russian citizens, and taking effective antiterrorism measures.