Presidential dynamics and legislative velocity in Russia, 1994–2007

Analysts of Russian politics often refer to the speed of legislative enactment when assessing the decisiveness and democratic accountability of presidential power. This article considers whether speed is a meaningful indicator of institutional dynamics during the presidencies of Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin. Drawing on an original data set of 251 important laws passed in Russia between 1994 and 2007, it examines how patterns of legislative velocity can shed light on the different forms of democratic (minority and coalitional) and authoritarian presidential rule that have existed under the 1993 Constitution.