Comparative Analysis Of Russia’s Three Constitutional Amendments In The Post-Soviet Period

Russia’s political development has a tendency of Path Dependence.The power of the Russian President is endowed by the Constitution,and the president’s power is continuously,directly or indirectly expanded via constitutional amendments,which seem to centralize power.Each time it expands presidential power;there are different motivations and different ways of amending the constitution.This article starts from the "Commonality of changes in the re-separation of power" and "Difference in the benefits of initiator of amendment",and studies the three Constitutional Amendments of the Russian Federation in the post-Soviet era under Putin’s administration.Comparing the three constitutional amendments in 2008,2014,and 2020,focusing on the changes in the power of the “president”,the changes have two dimensions: First,the position of “President” has continuously acquired political power after amending.In the analysis of presidential power,this article argues that the “President” has been expanding power with the help of Uncertainty of constitutional role and Institutional flexibility of the Semi-presidentialism.Second,the individual "president",as an initiator to propose Constitution amending,has resulted different benefits sum from a game theory perspective.In the analysis of initiator’s gain and loss,this article divides the constitutional amendments into three sub-types: Manipulative Constitutional Amendment(zero-sum);Tactical Constitutional Amendment(positive-sum);Reformative Constitutional Amendment(proposer with gains and losses).In 2008,Putin was not the initiator of the constitutional amendment,and Medvedev,the proposer,without benefit.Therefore,it was a manipulative amendment by the political elite.In 2014,the constitutional amendment enabled the political elites and the initiator to acquire political power,so it was a tactical amendment by the president to expand its power.The 2020 constitutional reform is an adjustment that both expands and shrinks the power of the president,which was a reformative amendment to adjust the relationships among powers fixed in the constitution.In contemporary times,post-Soviet countries are facing the leave of authoritarian figures;urgently need a smooth transition of power and maintenance of political stability.The political practices of these countries have the sign of mutual reference and learning.This article attempts to analyze the possibilities of using similar political strategy-"constitutional amendment" in other countries.