Putin proposes “zeroing out” term clock, extending his rule through 2036
On March 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin unexpectedly attended a State Duma session. He spoke in front of parliament members, commenting on three proposals that were made during the session:
• Holding early parliamentary elections in connection with upcoming constitutional amendments
• Removing the limit on the number of terms one person can serve
• “Zeroing out” the term clock, that is, considering all previous terms served as insignificant to a president’s election eligibility
Vladimir Putin recommended that parliament members reject the first two initiatives.
And he agreed with the third, but specified: “as long as the Constitutional Court recognizes it as legal.” If the “zeroing out” amendment is adopted, it means that when his term expires in 2024, Putin will be able to run for president two more times (12 years).
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A nationwide vote on the constitutional amendments is scheduled for April 22.
