,
Tul'skaya, Tverskaya, Tyumenskaya, Tyva (Kyzyl)*, Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)*,
Ul'yanovskaya, Ust'-Ordynskiy Buryatskiy (Ust'-Ordynskiy)**,
Vladimirskaya, Volgogradskaya, Vologodskaya, Voronezhskaya,
Yamalo-Nenetskiy (Salekhard)**, Yaroslavskaya, Yevreyskaya*****; note -
when using a place name with an adjectival ending 'skaya' or 'skiy,'
the word Oblast' or Avonomnyy Okrug or Kray should be added to the
place name note: administrative divisions have the same names as their
administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name
following in parentheses)

Independence: 24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Russia Day, 12 June (1990)

Constitution: adopted 12 December 1993

Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN
(acting president since 31 December 1999, president since 7 May 2000)
head of government: Aleksey Leonidovich KUDRIN (since 18 May 2000),
Aleksey Vasilyevich GORDEYEV (since 20 May 2000), Viktor Borisovich
KHRISTENKO (since 31 May 1999), Valentina Ivanovna MATVIYENKO (since
22 September 1998) cabinet: and his deputies, ministers, and other
agency heads; all are appointed by the president note: there is also a
Presidential Administration (PA) that provides staff and policy support
to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy
among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to
the president election results: Vladimirovich PUTIN 52.9%, Gennadiy
Andreyevich ZYUGANOV 29.2%, Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY 5.8%
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held 26 March 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); note - no vice
president; if the president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers
because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier succeeds
him; the premier serves as acting president until a new presidential
election is held, which must be within three months; premier appointed
by the president with the approval of the Duma

Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye
consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (178 seats;
as of July 2000, members appointed by the top executive and legislative
officials in each of the 89 federal administrative units - oblasts, krays,
republics, autonomous okrugs a