Volgograd Governor Anatoly Brovko stepped down on Tuesday, with State Duma deputy Sergei Bozhenov appointed as his temporary replacement, the Kremlin reported on its web site.
No reason was given for Brovko’s resignation. Neither him nor Bozhenov, a member of the ruling United Russia and former Astrakhan mayor, commented on the reshuffle Tuesday.
Volgograd region, which Brovko headed since 2009, was mired in a scandal following the Duma elections in December, during which United Russia underperformed in the region, garnering 36 percent of the vote compared to its national average of 49 percent. Regional authorities then ordered a recount, which brought the party’s showing to 42 percent, prompting allegations of rigged vote count.
Brovko, along with Ilya Mikhalchuk and Pavel Ipatov, governors of Arkhangelsk and Saratov regions, respectively, was also reported by Forbes to be on bad terms with Vladimir Volodin, new first deputy chief of the presidential administration, who replaced “grey cardinal” Vladislav Surkov at the job in December. Mikhalchuk was removed last week.
A Kremlin source said on Tuesday that a big purge of the governors’ ranks is not on the cards, but removals may continue in the weeks leading to the presidential elections on March 4.
“There are no plans for mass sackings, but two or three more staff decisions cannot be ruled out,” the source said. He named no names.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the favorite of the presidential race, criticized Kirov Governor Nikita Belykh last week, accusing him of neglecting his duties. When Belykh, a former leader of the liberal opposition, dismissed the allegations, Putin said that governor firings may continue if he wins the March elections, but named no names.
