Four Gubernatorial By-Elections Added To September Regional Polls Amid Wider Admin Rejig

Local media outlets report that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on decrees to appoint five acting regional governors as part of an overhaul of the administration in the wake of the presidential election and his swearing-in ceremony.

• The focus in the recent days has been on the reshuffle of top security officials, with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu moved to the position of National Security Council Secretary and replaced by economist Andrey Belousov. Changes to the security cluster have been interpreted as an attempt to increase the effectiveness of Russia's war economy, cement a long-term commitment to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine and implement Putin's resource-based war strategy.
• Apart from these changes, Putin promoted four regional governors to Cabinet positions, the most during his time in office, and tapped another one to become his special adviser ("assistant"). This does not represent any real empowerment of the Russian regions - independent media outlet Vyorstka reported that all the promoted officials had close personal links to Putin or his inner circle and enjoyed the Kremlin's trust.
• In the Russian political system, regional governors are elected for five-year terms in staggered elections, which take place each year in September for a certain number of regions. The Central Election Commission (CEC) confirmed that gubernatorial by-elections will be held in four regions during the "single voting day" on September 8 this year, following the departure of the four respective governors, alongside regular elections in Kursk and 15 other regions.
• The table below summarises changes in gubernatorial seats, as per RBC and Kommersant reports. The names of acting governors are not a surprise, with four of them leaked to Vedomosti ahead of time.