Elections and dynamics of the Symbolic Politics of Government in the 2011–2012 Electoral Cycle
In the article the substance of the symbolic politics of government providing the electoral process during the period from 2004 to the present time is considered. As the author notes at the core of symbolic complex characterizing this politics are the interpretations of elections as obligation, war, situation of stress, gift, etc. It is arguable that postulated statements on immaturity of the civil society, unreadiness of electors for informed choice and specificity of Russia form the basis of the symbolic politics of government in respect to elections. In recent times the dynamics of the symbolic politics of government is connected with the necessity of response to the 2011–2012 mass protests. The main directions of this dynamics have still tactical nature leaving the main postulates of established symbolic complex unchanged. The author lays special emphasis on the following abovementioned directions – the logics of accusation against the opposition, the logics of appeal to the law as well as the logic of grounding advances of the Russian electoral system through selective comparison. In the author's opinion actually the only direction of strategic dynamics of the symbolic politics of government is to change its addressee to paternalistically oriented layers and groups that leads to principal increase of the traditionalist logics and contents segment in the symbolic politics.