Le Monde: The Kremlin Is Concerned About Putin's Falling Ratings

• 3.05.2026, 21:04

There is tension in political circles.

As Russia prepares for parliamentary elections, dictator Vladimir Putin's popularity continues to fall, and this is causing concern in the Kremlin, writes Le Monde on May 3.

Putin's popularity rating has been steadily declining for six weeks since early March, according to the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM).

The main reasons for Putin's falling rating are the war in Ukraine and economically That's exactly the kind of story the Kremlin's political technologists released on April 27. In it, Putin visited a sports center where about twenty gymnasts were lined up to meet him, and Putin kissed one of them on the forehead.

The publication also recalled a similar incident in June 2023, after the mutiny of the creator of the PMC Wagner Evgeny Prigozhin. Then, during a visit to Dagestan, the Kremlin leader kissed a teenage girl on the forehead in a crowd of locals.

"The incident with the kiss in St. Petersburg is a sure sign that Putin is concerned about his declining popularity," said Russian political scientist Farida Rustamova. She also noted that social networks are increasingly showing clips made by ordinary citizens criticizing the government.

A source in Moscow told the publication that tension reigns in political circles. Those who did not get rich from the war are suffering from the Internet blackout, he said. "They mock Putin, this new Brezhnev, so detached from reality. But fear reigns. Even among the elite," the source said.