@Ninian
Of course do not misunderstand me. Russia as a country does not understand democracy. Despite efforts, you do not have it. If you have 150 million people and 50 million still don't get it, you do not have it. This is a problem that is only solved by time, because you cannot force people to think differently.
In western multi-faction democracies, 20% is enough to win elections sometimes. It's even possible to form a government with minority support (<50%) because the rest of the parties do not agree to join in opposition. Nobody likes this happening, but they can trust it because they can challenge it. If the people did not believe in the values of democracy and there were no mechanisms to challenge the elected state, we would have Putin as well.
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@Ninian
Of course do not misunderstand me. Russia as a country does not understand democracy. Despite efforts, you do not have it. If you have 150 million people and 50 million still don't get it, you do not have it. This is a problem that is only solved by time, because you cannot force people to think differently.
In western multi-faction democracies, 20% is enough to win elections sometimes. It's even possible to form a government with minority support (<50%) because the rest of the parties do not agree to join in opposition. Nobody likes this happening, but they can trust it because they can challenge it. If the people did not believe in the values of democracy and there were no mechanisms to challenge the elected state, we would have Putin as well.