Becoming a Russian Oligarch After Rebirth
Chapter 916 - 859: Wild Ideas

Chapter 916: Chapter 859: Wild Ideas

However, one can’t blame Wang Ye for this, as incumbents naturally have many advantages in such elections.

Especially in a political system like Russia’s, the government also possesses a lot of media and economic resources.

Therefore, the Kremlin can mobilize these resources to build momentum for itself!

Perhaps Khodorkovsky needs to spend a lot of money to achieve the publicity effect that the Kremlin can easily attain with just a piece of news or the introduction of a policy.

Just as Khodorkovsky just mentioned, the recent deployment of weapons in Kaliningrad was initially a crisis, but after Wang Ye insisted on making a strong response, it turned into a good thing.

Many ordinary people think the incumbent Kremlin acts decisively and takes a tough stance, which fits the "aesthetic" of the Russians.

So after that incident, the Kremlin’s support rate began to soar.

The recent Great Infrastructure Project has had a similar effect...

Thus, after the latest poll results came out, Khodorkovsky straight up didn’t want to "play" anymore!

What’s the point of continuing the election? In the end, he would be nothing more than a "walk-on" clown!

He came to Wang Ye today to hear his opinion, hoping for an easy concession, which might save him a lot of trouble.

...

After figuring out what Khodorkovsky meant, Wang Ye frowned and thought for a moment.

Then he shook his head and said, "My advice is that you continue with the election, Uncle. But don’t have any expectations for the election results, just take it as an opportunity for practice and learning, since you will be entering politics in the future anyway. Participating in a General Election and finishing second in terms of vote share is also a worthwhile experience!"

Khodorkovsky said with a wry smile, "There are only two candidates, what’s the significance of being second?"

"No, no, no, at the start, there were quite a few who wanted to participate in the election, but they didn’t even make it to the final round. The fact that you made it to the final round says a lot. Trust me, the official election is about to take place, carry on as you have been, but remember one thing: don’t attack the Kremlin anymore, whether it’s people or policies! This way, it will only be beneficial for your future development," Wang Ye said earnestly.

This was definitely heartfelt advice from him.

This matter involved Khodorkovsky’s fate, so Wang Ye tried his best to "rescue" him.

Up to this point, it could be said that Wang Ye had almost untangled the "knot," only one step was left...

Wang Ye believed that after the latest poll results, the Kremlin would no longer consider Khodorkovsky a real competitor, nor would it think about taking him down completely.

On the contrary, having such an opposition figure whose support rate was neither too high nor too low, but who definitely couldn’t threaten their position, was something the Kremlin would welcome.

After all, it’s a "free democratic" country. If there were no opposition voices at all, that wouldn’t look good.

The current situation was just perfect!

For this reason, the Kremlin might even secretly support Khodorkovsky to prevent him from becoming disillusioned and withdrawing from politics altogether.

If Khodorkovsky really withdrew, that would be a "loss" for the Kremlin.

Because the "vacancy" left by the opposition would need someone to fill it, and when the next candidate emerged, there might be another round of fierce competition.

At that time, the Kremlin’s situation might not be as good as it is now!

Thus, after comprehensive consideration, Wang Ye advised Khodorkovsky to continue participating in the election as planned since the outcome was already determined, so there was no pressure anymore; maintaining a normal attitude would suffice.

But he also didn’t forget to remind Khodorkovsky, since there was no hope of winning the election, it would be better to be a "good person" and refrain from attacking your opponents. In this way, everyone competes in a friendly atmosphere, and you can maintain a good reputation...

...

After listening to Wang Ye’s advice, Khodorkovsky nodded thoughtfully.

He laughed and said, "Hey, if I lose the election, doesn’t that mean I’ll be unemployed for the next few years? If I had known today would come, I might as well have taken a job in the Duma. Given the number of seats our faction holds, I could have at least mixed in a Vice Speaker or chairman of an important committee, right?"

The political system in Russia is quite complex and differs from that of most countries in the world.

According to the Constitution, the system is multipartite, but due to the political structure and actual situation, it’s a very unique "party politics without a ruling party."

This term might sound a bit clumsy, but put simply, the Kremlin is a "super faction."

Its leaders and their predecessors do not belong to any faction; they are elected directly by the people.

Thus, when forming a Cabinet after winning the election, the Kremlin nominates candidates for the ministers, who are confirmed through a Voting Decision by the Duma.

Then, the heads of other departments are decided through negotiations between the Kremlin and the Government.

These positions, including the ministers and department heads, are not chosen based on their factional background but on their suitability and competence.

Members of any faction could be chosen...

Of course, under normal circumstances, it is still necessary to select from factions that support you; you can’t possibly be fostering members of the opposition factions!

So, although Khodorkovsky spent a considerable amount of money to establish a new faction for this General Election,

he actually had to leave the faction and run as a "non-faction" candidate when the actual Election began.