Nezavisimaya Gazeta released its infamous list of the “100 Leading Political Figures” for 2009. Putin, of course, leads with Medvedev not very far behind. Surprisingly, third place went to Aleksei Kudrin – quite the liberal by Russian standards – which is probably NG‘s recognition of changes in the political climate wrought by the crisis, ascension of Medvedevites, etc. Here’s the top 20 with their average scores, titles, and links to bios (in English when available):
- Putin, Vladimir Vladimirovich (9.3) – Prime Minister
- Medvedev, Dmitry Anatolevich (9.14) – President
- Kudrin, Aleksei Leonidovich (7.27) – Minister of Finance
- Surkov, Vladislav Yurevich (7.2) – First Deputy Chief of Staff, Presidential Administration
- Sechin, Igor Ivanovich (7.09) – Deputy Prime Minister
- Kirill (6.53) – Patriarch of Moscow and all ‘Rus’
- Sobyanin, Sergei Semenovich (6.38) – Deputy Prime Minister
- Shuvalov, Igor Ivanovich (6.34) – First Deputy Prime Minister
- Naryshkin, Sergei Evgenevich (6.21) – Head of Presidential Administration
- Miller, Aleksei Borisovich (5.65) – Chairman of Gazprom
- Golikova, Tatyana Alekseevna (5.6) – Minister of Health and Social Development
- Lavrov, Sergei Viktorovich (5.57) – Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Gryzlov, Boris Vyacheslavovich (5.54) – Chairman of State Duma
- Dvorkovich, Arkady Vladimirovich (5.53) – Assistant to the President
- Serdyukov, Anatoliy Eduardovich (5.43) – Minister of Defense
- Nabiullina, Elvira Sakhipzadovna (5.23) – Minister of Trade and Economic Development
- Nurgaliev, Rashid Gumarovich (5.15) – Minister of the Interior
- Chemezov, Sergei Viktorovich (5.14) – General Dir. of RosTekhnologiya
- Bortnikov, Aleksandr Vasilevich (5.07) – Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB)
- Ignatev, Sergei Mikhailovich (5.02) – Chairman of the Central Bank of Russia