MOSCOW, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- A majority of Russians apparently want Vladimir Putin to continue to run the country when his term as president ends.
A recent poll by the independent Levada Center found that 61 percent of Moscow residents favor Putin’s becoming prime minister, The Guardian reported. That means his support is almost certainly higher in the provinces, where opposition is weaker.
"Putin is a 'Teflon' president. Nothing sticks to him," said Lev Gudkov, the center’s director. "All successes and positive tendencies are ascribed to him and all failures are loaded on to the government, bureaucrats, or 'enemies' of Russia."
The Russian constitution bars Putin from a third term as president. He appears ready to run a weak place-holder in March who will then name him prime minister. Putin could then run for president in 2012 or convert Russia to a parliamentary structure with a strong prime minister.
Putin's fans include a group of Moscow students in their late teens interviewed by The Guardian.
"I love our president," Yulia Minazhetdinova, an 18-year-old from Moscow wearing a T-shirt that says "I want Putin."
