Editor-in-Chief: Yuriy M. Pochta, PhD, Professor ISSN: 2313-1438 (Print) ISSN: 2313-1446 (Online) Founded in 1999. Publication frequency: quarterly PUBLISHER: Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba (RUDN University) Open Access: . APC: no article processing charge Peer-Review: double blind. Publication language: Russian, English Indexation: White List RCSI, Russian Index of Science Citation, RSCI, Google Scholar, Ulrich's Periodicals Directory, IPSA, DOAJ, Dimensions
Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba (RUDN University)
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Publishing Agreement (Public Offer) to Publish an Article in an Academic Periodical 'RUDN Journal of Political Science' The Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education "Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba” (RUDN University), represented by the Vice-Rector for Scientific Work Andrey Aleksandrovich Kostin, acting under a Power of Attorney No 0036-09/25-122 dated 21.05.2025, hereinafter referred to as the Publisher, on the one hand, hereby offers to the public at large, hereinafter referred to as the Author, on the other hand, hereinafter collectively referred to as the Parties, to enter into this agreement, hereinafter referred to as the Agreement, regarding publication of scholarly materials, hereinafter referred to as the Article, in the Journal named 'RUDN Journal of Political Science', hereinafter referred to as the Journal, under the following terms. 1. General Terms and Conditions 1.1. 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The Author will, on a goodwill basis, submit his/her details (and details of each Co-Author subject to their prior consent) to the Journal's Editorial Office consisting of his/her: last name, first name, patronymic, academic rank, academic degree, job title, employer details (name and mailing address), work phone number and e-mail address for the purpose of its general publication in the Journal along with the Article. 11. Registered Address and Particulars of the Publisher Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education "Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba” (RUDN University) Address: Mikluho-Maklaya st., 6, Moscow, 117198 TIN 7728073720, CRR 772801001, PSRN 1027739189323. Vice Rector for Scientific Work A.A. Kostin
Making Government Decisions: In Search of a Comprehensive Structure
The complex theoretical picture that has developed around public decision-making is replete with multiple contradictions and risk reflections, which are sometimes quite poorly responsive to the systemic practices that have developed in this area. Interdisciplinary conflicts, scientific traditions based on research in various national polities and supported by authoritative academic schools, as well as the widespread use of normative approaches that heavily rely on democratic priorities for state evolution, all contribute to the persistence and expansion of epistemic divisions in this field of research. Conceptual disagreements and discrepancies regarding even the basic parameters of this process converge only in the understanding of the need for its constant theoretical refinement. But are there any grounds for hope in developing a relatively holistic and comprehensive theoretical model of government decisions that reflects the specific nature of government? In this article, the movement in this direction is associated with further attribution of this process, which reflects the current and, at the same time, specific practices of making this type of decision. Methodologically, such attribution is proposed to be carried out on the basis of a combination of the principles of the agent-based approach (which allows us to display the real composition of the participants in this process, along with the resources, strategies, and typical patterns they use), as well as the network measurement of the mechanism of state goal-setting (which reflects the multi-component logic of the interaction between political and administrative, public, and latent communications). Overcoming the limitations of the normative approach and the principles of individual methodology, this analytical framework allows us to reveal the substantive parameters of state decision-making, which reflect the co-adaptation of the actual participants in this process and the resulting flexibility of their positioning in the public and latent arenas of the modern state, as well as the possibilities and limitations of using administrative and legal tools.
Copyright (c) 2026 Solovyev A.I. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Transformation of Public Administration in the Context of Contingent Social Systems
This study examines the transformation of public administration theory and practice in the new context of contingent social systems. The relationship between the bifurcation development of modern society and trends in administrative reforms is determined. The uncertainty and randomness of social and political processes is reflected in the mixed nature of administrative reforms, which simultaneously employ ideas of state bureaucracy, new public management, network governance, public governance, crisis management, and others. The persistence of bifurcation processes has posed new challenges for public governability, which has led to a search for new approaches and governance models. As the research demonstrates, this has also been facilitated by the development of the concept of contingency and its widespread adoption in governance science. Ontologically, contingency has come to be understood as a necessary variability of reality, which has been incorporated into the consideration of the conditions for the sustainable development of social systems. Concepts of crisis, prototypical, modular, and robust public governance have begun to emerge in the sociology of governance. Author focuses on modular public governance with its principles of decomposition, autonomy, interoperability, recombinability, scalability, and flexibility. The conclusion suggests that the development of various public governance models must now be analyzed in the context of socio- and political-technical systems.
Copyright (c) 2026 Smorgunov L.V. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Public Administration and Political Management: Interaction of Spheres, Factors, and Actors
The study of the spheres of interaction between public administration and political management usually includes lobbying of interest groups, political socialization, electoral and state information campaigns, political and administrative conflicts, when the object of investigation is politics and policymaking. Less often, the organizations themselves and the processes of influence, including actors and factors of public administration, are compared. In this research, the classical topic of interaction between administration and politics is presented in a polystructural way, by identifying the specifics of subject-subject relations at different levels of public administration. Political management appears as a kind of immanent «superstructure» of public administration as a set of mechanisms (legal and latent) of the decision-making and execution process, being a structured communication that ensures the exchange of powerfully significant resources between public servants and political actors. The result is a stable system in which, along with bureaucratic rules, the set of political instruments used (polity policies) is expanded. In the latter, an increasing share is occupied by agreements and obligations that affect the motivation of decision-makers and the guidelines for managerial activity. They are transformed in accordance with the dependencies theoretically explained by the patronage, cluster and agency types of mechanisms of interaction between political management and public administration, while the civil society mechanism turns into camouflage. The conclusion of the article: political management not only complicates, but also weakens the actually operating system of powers of state bodies and functional representation of interests.
Copyright (c) 2026 Kupryashin G.L. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Modeling Government-Parliament Interaction: A Post-Soviet Legislative Framework
The interaction of the government and parliament is one of the common topics in the framework of research on the configuration of political power, forms of government, political decision-making processes, etc. In order to effectively implement and adjust laws, and especially the budget, the executive branch is often forced to assume the functions of a legislator and directly participate in legislative decision-making, albeit in a limited format - It will not be possible to pass a law without its adoption in parliament. This situation forces the Government to look for all possible tools to influence the course and outcome of consideration of legislative initiatives, which ultimately determines its role in the legislative process. The study presents an attempt to determine the specifics of the interaction of the branches of government in the legislative process. For this purpose, a conceptual model is proposed based on the ideas of the three main traditions of neo-institutionalism: historical, sociological and rational choice theory. The conceptual framework of the model includes three main elements: institutional (context, resources, rules of the game), actor (parties, experts, bureaucratic structures) and applied (processes, technologies, communications). The analytical potential of the proposed model is confirmed by examples of interaction between branches of government in post-Soviet countries.
Copyright (c) 2026 Pomiguev I.A., Alekseev D.V. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
The Role of Citizens in a Modern State: Rights and Mechanisms of Influence
The study presents an analysis of the role of citizens in a modern state, the mechanisms and results of their influence on the management of state affairs, and how and what influence they have on the activities of the state. It is shown that citizens of democratic states exert a decisive influence on state activities through the institution of elections, which allows them to periodically form political teams to manage state affairs. However, citizens’ electoral behavior does not always facilitate the formation of professional management teams due to significant support for both left-wing and right-wing populism. Between election campaigns, citizens utilize traditional forms of political action-petitions, public statements, and collective and individual appeals to government bodies. Modern information and communication technologies (ICTs) create the conditions for expanding the scale and increasing the efficiency of such actions. In the context of post-industrial civilizational transition, traditional institutions and mechanisms for citizen influence on state authorities are insufficiently responsive and effective due to the delayed adaptation of political systems to new conditions. To compensate for the resulting dysfunction, citizens began to use an inclusive political institution - public mass protests. In authoritarian states, where all traditional institutions and mechanisms for citizen influence over state power are blocked, protests become an institutional factor in the transformation of ruling regimes. The study utilized a neo-institutional approach combined with factual analysis.
Copyright (c) 2026 Nisnevich Y.A. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
The Expertise of Political Decision-Making in Russia’s Regional Authorities: A Case Study of Voronezh
Modern elites face growing public demand for expanded channels of representation in political decision-making. Various regional stakeholders are interested in creating the necessary conditions for civic engagement in public authorities in modern Russia. This paper attempts to uncover some theoretical and practical aspects of the participation of representatives of the scientific and expert community in public administration in a specific constituent entity of the Russian Federation. Expert work in the regions is aimed at ensuring a balance of interests of various social groups, adapting federal political initiatives to regional conditions, and supporting sustainable development of territories. The purpose of the study is to clarify expert understanding of the specifics of political decision-making in regional public authorities in modern Russia, using the Voronezh Region as an example. The findings are based on the results of an empirical study in the form of an expert survey, which was conducted in July-August 2025 in the city of Voronezh. The data collection method was in-depth interviews; the sample size was 22 experts. The author identifies the main formats of interaction between public authorities and the scientific expert community, the challenges and prospects for cooperation, as well as key practices for developing regional expert capacity and the levels of political expertise. The key specific characteristics of this type of expertise include the need to consider the multi-level interactions between the federal, regional, and municipal levels of government, the influence of local political and social factors, and the lack of a unified regulatory framework.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sosunov D.V. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Geopolitical Models of the Russian-Chines Partnership in the Studies of the French Liberal-Conservative School
Against the background of continuous growth of the importance of geopolitical issues in the study of foreign policy processes of the 21st century, its reflection in the materials of numerous Western expert and analytical centers deserves attention. In this regard, the French website diploweb.com La révue géopolitique is of interest, performing a kind of “umbrella” role for several ideologically close structures. Created in 2000, it is positioned by its management and scientific council as the “First Francophone site on geopolitics”. Its positions are based on commitment to liberal-conservative ideology with its inherent differences from universalist globalism and opposition to national populism, on the one hand, and authoritarianism, on the other. One of the constant themes of the materials published on the site concerns the geopolitics of Russia-Chinese relations. The article shows that their interpretation comes down to three conceptual models: “Alliance of Authoritarianisms”, “Vassalization of Russia” and “Duopoly for three, the fourth in ambush”. Based on the textual approach and discourse analysis, it is concluded that the views expressed on the site do not confirm the ideological pluralism declared by its Charter. Rather, they are characterized by ideological intransigence towards other points of view, characteristic of liberal conservatism. What dominates are not attempts at an objective study of foreign policy processes concerning the Russia-Chinese partnership, as the desire to contribute to the attitudes of the ruling establishment in the EU and the decisions it makes in this area.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tsygankov P.A. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Artificial Intelligence in Political Forecasting: Possibilities and Limitations
The purpose of the study is to identify the possibilities and limitations of artificial intelligence technologies in political forecasting. The principles of simplified factor analysis, as well as critical discourse analysis of academic literature devoted to the use of AI in political forecasting, served as methodological tools. The analysis showed the inconsistency of the introduction of intelligent systems in the field of modern political forecasting. Firstly, among the trigger factors contributing to the development of political AI prognostics, the following were identified: the ability to process huge amounts of information about politics using AI; working out the reliability of future decisions in the field of domestic and foreign policy; high predictive potentials of neural networks with high-quality organization of training and testing; modeling the political behavior of individuals and social groups; identification of precursor of political events by neural networks. Secondly, the stop factors hindering the development of political AI forecasting include: the effect of «poisoning data» due to its inaccuracy, marginality and unreliability; value bias of intelligent systems; substitution of political forecasting by over-fitting data; imperfection of existing political theories used in conjunction with machine learning; tendency of AI to escalation political modeling. The conclusions indicate that the most important trigger factors include the search for hidden political patterns, as well as the hybridization of machine and traditional political forecasting capabilities. It is emphasized that the prospects of the factor of searching for hidden political patterns can balance and exceed the serious risks of the «black box» effect only in combination with the factor of the possibility of hybridization, corresponding to the parameter of the combining the potentials of all three types of forecasting - trend (mathematical), analytical modeling and expertise.
Copyright (c) 2026 Fedorchenko S.N. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Artificial Intelligence in Political Analysis: Notes from a Moderate Optimist
In modern political science research, increased attention is being paid to the analysis of the possibilities and limitations of using artificial intelligence (AI). The evolution of AI methods from neural networks to generative artificial intelligence (AGI) models is considered. The author systematizes the main AI tools for political analysis: machine learning, deep learning, neural networks of various architectures, natural language processing (NLP). An overview of software platforms for collecting, processing and visualizing political data is presented. Key thematic areas of AI application are highlighted: electoral research, political discourse analysis, international relations and geopolitics studies, public administration. The capabilities of the NLP method for sentiment analysis, topic modeling and extraction of main ideas from political texts are outlined. The author not only emphasizes the advantages of using AI in political analysis (automation, reducing research time, new forecasting capabilities), but also shows the risks and limitations: technical vulnerabilities of models, the phenomenon of “AI hallucinations”, bias of algorithms, problems of transparency and the ability to interpret results, ethical and legal challenges. The position of “cautious optimism” is substantiated, which assumes the effective use of AI while maintaining systematic analysis, norms of critical reflection, ethical principles and maintaining the professional competencies of a political scientist. The conclusion is drawn about the need for the responsible use of AI in political research, mastery of modern digital analytics tools and the mandatory retention of skills in traditional methods of studying the sphere of politics.
Copyright (c) 2026 Popova O.V. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Electoral Technologies in the Structure of Russian Political Management
The reducing electoral technologies to the processes of communication of a candidate (party) with voters, which many authors do, unduly narrows the content of this concept. The purpose of the study is to substantiate a broad approach to understanding electoral technologies as mechanisms that control electoral processes in the interests of a particular political entity. That is why electoral technologies occupy a central place in the structure of political management. Each electoral technology represents a synthesis of research, design, communication, organizational, controlling, and financial actions that are rationally organized and time-distributed on the way to achieving results. The research methodology is based on the distinction between electoral technology and electoral strategy, each of which is subject to its own logic. Both strategy and technology are formed on the basis of marketing research of the electoral situation. Political management as a special type of management activity uses the results of marketing research to achieve the goals of a political entity. A successful electoral strategy is unique; its implementation involves a system of coordinated electoral technologies that involve voters in the candidate’s sphere of influence, ensuring that a certain number of voters are included in the total number of supporters of the candidate (party) who are ready to vote for him. Electoral technologies are being developed and used not only by candidates for government and their teams, but also by election commissions, executive authorities and other social actors. It is shown that electoral technology is a synthesis of both material and intellectual actions combined into a single process of influencing the political behavior and consciousness of voters. The prospects of electoral management in Russia are seen in the expansion of pre-selection tools for candidates and in development of political competition. This is a continuation of the state’s electoral policy of promoting genuine patriots who have proven their commitment to the common good.
Copyright (c) 2026 Amelin V.N. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Corporate Political Activity and Firms’ Public Policy in the System of Public Affairs Management
A whole range of concepts are used in the analyses of the strategies of political activity and political behavior of business towards state bodies in different countries. In the Russian literature, lobbying and GR-management are among most well-known concepts. On the contrary, foreign literature in the field of political science and strategic management focuses on «corporate political activity», «corporate public policy» and «public affairs management». The complex political and economic environment of business, especially international, inevitably leads to its involvement in various kinds of communications with state and public structures, dictating the need to create integrated non-market strategies. In practice, this leads to a mixture of different approaches designed to formulate a strategy for political and managerial interaction relevant to the environment. The complexity of modern companies often complicates the study of the political dimension of business activities, since the above-mentioned concepts are interpreted as synonymous or are not considered in political analysis, thus making the process of forming political strategies unclear for research. This study attempts to formulate a conceptual scheme of above-mentioned definitions, to correlate them with each other and to describe the relationship, adding clarity to the algorithm of analyzing political strategies and business tactics.
Copyright (c) 2026 Degtyarev A.A., Davydov P.M., Teteryuk A.S. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Lobbying in the Federal Law-Making Process: Business Access Points
The effectiveness of business influence channels in the process of drafting and adopting legislative initiatives in Russia remains insufficiently studied, despite their significance for public policy formation. The aim of this study is to identify which institutionally formalized «access points» exist and are used by business actors to participate in the federal legislative process, as well as to analyze their practical effectiveness. The analysis covers the main scenarios of drafting and introducing bills to the State Duma by senators, deputies, and the Government of the Russian Federation. To identify these «access points», the study employs a political and legal analysis of the regulations of the Federation Council, the State Duma, and the Government of the Russian Federation, as well as related normative legal acts and documents that define procedures for the preparation, submission, and consideration of bills. To illustrate the results of the analysis, examples from the practice of developing legislative regulation in the IT sector are provided. The findings identify the main forms of business participation in the legislative process and reveal institutional constraints that reduce the effectiveness of the corresponding «access points».
Copyright (c) 2026 Zuykov A.V., Potapkin A.S., Chirkov S.S. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Party Systems of Russian Regions in the 2024 Elections: What is Left of the Competition?
In the context of the transformation of the Russian electoral and party systems, the study of the situation of political parties in the regions of Russia and the dynamics of the development of regional party systems is an urgent task. The purpose of the study is to assess the level of political competition in regional elections and determine the current trends in the development of party systems in Russian regions. The empirical basis of the work was the data of the Central Election Commission of Russian Federation on the participation of political parties in the elections of 2024 to the legislative assemblies of 12 constituent entities of the Russian Federation in comparison with the results of the two previous electoral cycles. A comprehensive analysis of the level of electoral competition in the regions was carried out on the basis of the author’s methodology, which includes both the traditional meaningful analysis of statistical materials and the use of an index approach (calculation of the effective number of parties). In the 2024 elections, a further decline in the number of parties and their level of activity was accompanied by a noticeable drop in the level of electoral competition compared to the results of a number of previous election campaigns. In most regions, not only a decrease in the number of nominated and registered party lists was recorded, but also a significant increase in the indicators of United Russia, as well as a significant decrease in the value of the index of the effective number of electoral parties. The effective number of parliamentary parties remains extremely low. The election results described mean that the previously observed trend of growing party diversity and fragmentation of electorates in the respective regions has been replaced by a trend of curtailment of party pluralism and consolidation of voters around an increasingly limited range of parties.
Copyright (c) 2026 Shpagin S.A. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Understanding Spanish Politics. Book review: Baranov, A.V. (2024). Transformation of the Party System of Contemporary Spain (Electoral Aspect). Krasnodar: Kuban State University publ., 300 p. (In Russian)
Copyright (c) 2026 Zaznaev O.I., Zaripova A.R. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0