A Just Russia – For Truth facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Socialist Political Party "A Just Russia—Patriots—For Truth" Социалистическая политическая партия "Справедливая Россия — Патриоты — За правду"
Abbreviation	SRZP
Chairman	Sergey Mironov
Co-chairmen	Zakhar Prilepin Gennady Semigin
Parliamentary Leader	Sergey Mironov
Founded	28 October 2006; 18 years ago (2006-10-28) (original form) 28 January 2021; 4 years ago (2021-01-28) (current form)
Merger of	Rodina (factions) Russian Party of Life People's Party Socialist United Party Party of Social Justice Patriots of Russia For Truth
Headquarters	Moscow, Russia
Membership (2012)	400,000 (claimed)
Ideology	Social democracy Democratic socialism Social conservatism National conservatism Eurasianism
Political position	Centre to centre-left
National affiliation	All-Russia People's Front National Patriotic Forces of Russia
Continental affiliation	Forum of Socialists of the CIS Countries [ru]
International affiliation	Socialist International (2008–2022)
Colours	Yellow      Red
Federation Council	3 / 178
State Duma	28 / 450
Governors	1 / 85
Regional parliaments	226 / 3,983
Ministers	0 / 31
Party flag
Political parties

A Just Russia – For Truth (official short name: SRZP) is a political party in Russia. Its full name is the Socialist Political Party "A Just Russia—Patriots—For Truth". It used to be called A Just Russia.

This party is seen as part of the "systemic opposition" in Russia. This means it's an opposition party, but it often supports the main ideas and foreign policy of the current president, Vladimir Putin.

The party was created on 28 October 2006. It was formed when several smaller parties, like Rodina, the Russian Party of Life, and the Russian Pensioners' Party, joined together. Later, more parties joined. The party wanted to create a "New Socialism of the 21st Century". This idea aimed to protect individual rights and freedoms, and to make sure the country had a strong welfare state. A welfare state is a system where the government helps its citizens with things like healthcare and education.

On 28 January 2021, the party merged with two other parties, For Truth and Patriots of Russia. This is how it got its current name.

About A Just Russia

Party Names Over Time

The party has changed its name a few times:

• From 28 October 2006 to 25 June 2009: A Just Russia: Motherland/Pensioners/Life
• From 25 June 2009 to 22 February 2021: A Just Russia
• Since 22 February 2021: Socialist Political Party "A Just Russia – Patriots – For Truth"

How the Party Started

In 2006, a government official named Vladislav Surkov suggested that Russia should have two main political parties. One would be the ruling party, United Russia, and the other would be a strong opposition party. He thought this would make the political system stronger.

A Just Russia was officially formed on 28 October 2006. It was a merger of three parties: Rodina, the Russian Party of Life, and the Russian Pensioners' Party. Rodina was the largest of these, having won a good number of votes in the 2003 elections.

Former logo of the party until 2011

At the start, Sergey Mironov became the party's chairman. He supported President Putin's goals for the country. However, Mironov also strongly criticized Putin's party, United Russia. He said that United Russia had too much control over the country's politics and economy. Mironov wanted A Just Russia to be a "leftist political force" and a "hard opposition" party. He said, "if United Russia is the party of power, we will become the party of the people."

The party's first goals were to make Russia a fair and equal society. They wanted to honor traditions, be proud of history, and respect older people, while also looking to the future.

Early Election Successes

Soon after it was created, A Just Russia had its first election success. Their candidate won the mayoral election in Samara. In regional elections in March 2007, the party did well. They even won a majority in the local parliament in Stavropol Krai.

Sergey Mironov was the party's chairman from 2006 to 2011. He was also the chairman of the Federation Council, which is like a senate.

At first, some people in the government were worried that A Just Russia might become too strong and challenge United Russia. Before the 2007 national elections, the Kremlin (the Russian government) decided to fully support United Russia.

In May 2007, Sergey Mironov suggested that A Just Russia could merge with the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. He wanted to create an even bigger socialist party.

2007 National Elections

Before the December 2007 national elections, President Vladimir Putin openly supported the United Russia party. This made United Russia much more popular. This was a challenge for A Just Russia, which had also hoped to gain support from Putin's popularity.

An A Just Russia election poster in Saint Petersburg in November 2007. The party received 16% of the votes from this city in the 2007 national elections.

A Just Russia chose three main candidates for the election: chairman Sergey Mironov, Svetlana Goryacheva, and Sergey Shargunov. The party campaigned as a socialist option, different from the Communists.

In the end, A Just Russia received about 7.7% of the votes. This allowed them to get 38 out of 450 seats in the State Duma, which is like Russia's parliament. They did best in cities like Astrakhan (20%), Saint Petersburg (16%), and Stavropol (13%).

After the election, A Just Russia joined other parties in supporting Dmitry Medvedev as a candidate for the 2008 presidential election.

In 2008, A Just Russia joined the Socialist International. This is a global group of social-democratic political parties. However, they were later removed from this group in 2022.

Between 2007 and 2011, A Just Russia supported President Dmitry Medvedev's plans to modernize Russia. They wanted Russia to have a more diverse economy and a more democratic political system. They also wanted to make it easier for people to elect their regional governors and lower the voting threshold for the Duma elections.

The party often disagreed with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's government, even voting against his budget plans. However, they remained supportive of President Medvedev.

2011 National Elections

In the 2011 national elections, A Just Russia gained more support. They received about 13% of the votes, which gave them 64 seats in the Duma.

After these elections, there were reports of voting fraud. Many party members joined protests against the results. Important party members like Gennady Gudkov and Oksana Dmitriyeva took part in these demonstrations.

2012 Presidential Election

Sergey Mironov ran as the party's candidate for the 2012 presidential election. He said he wanted to win and promised to make Oksana Dmitriyeva prime minister if he became president. Mironov called for Russia to return to a socialist way of governing. He came in last place with about 3.85% of the votes.

After the election, A Just Russia continued to show its disagreement with some government policies. However, over time, some members who were very active in protests left the party.

In 2013, Mironov was re-elected as party leader. By 2014, A Just Russia, along with other major parties, supported Putin's foreign policy, especially after Crimea became part of Russia.

2016 National Elections

In the 2016 national elections, A Just Russia received about 6% of the votes. This meant they lost many seats, keeping only 23 in the Duma.

2018 Presidential Election

In 2017, Mironov announced that the party would not have its own candidate for the 2018 presidential election. Instead, they would support President Putin. Mironov said that A Just Russia would always be against United Russia, but not against Russia itself. He felt there was no other strong candidate to challenge Putin.

A van advertising the Just Russia political party in Ryazan. The words on the side say: "There will be changes!"

2021 National Elections

Before the 2021 national elections, A Just Russia merged with the parties Patriots of Russia and For Truth in January 2021. This created the new party, A Just Russia – Patriots – For Truth. Mironov remained the party leader.

The new party's goals included:

• Making the government's role in the economy stronger.
• Having a fairer tax system where richer people pay more.
• Making punishments for corruption tougher.
• Increasing the minimum wage, pensions, and social benefits.
• Changing the high school state exams.
• Giving more financial power to local regions.

The party aimed to come in second place in the election, but they ended up in third place, after United Russia and the Communist Party.

In February 2022, the party supported Russia's recognition of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic. They also supported the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Because of this, A Just Russia – For Truth was removed from the Socialist International in March 2022.

What the Party Believes In

A Just Russia wants to create a welfare state. This means a country where the government helps reduce economic inequality and provides services like healthcare and education. However, they also believe in protecting individual property rights and keeping a market economy.

Under Sergey Mironov's leadership, the party has called its ideas "New Socialism of the 21st century." They see this as the opposite of "unfair, rich-controlled capitalism." It's a type of socialism that focuses more on the individual.

The party's main goal is to improve the lives of average Russians. They want to change Russia's flat income tax to a progressive taxation system. This means people who earn more money would pay a higher percentage in taxes. They also want to spend more money on programs that help people find jobs.

In the State Duma, the party sees itself as a "constructive opposition." This means they oppose corruption and support making the political system more democratic. Even though they were often against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's government, they supported President Dmitry Medvedev's modernization plans. However, they later supported Putin in the 2018 presidential election.

In terms of international relations, A Just Russia wants Russia to move away from the Western influence. They want to strengthen relationships with countries that were once part of the Soviet Union. The party also opposes some "Western" ideas, such as LGBT rights.

Some party members have suggested a law that would allow private military companies to operate more freely. These companies could provide security for ships, train security forces, help with mine clearing, and protect officials.

Party Leaders

Chairmen of A Just Russia

No.	Portrait	Chairmen	Took office	Left office
1		Sergey Mironov	28 October 2006	16 April 2011
2		Nikolai Levichev	16 April 2011	27 October 2013
3		Sergey Mironov	27 October 2013	22 February 2021

Chairmen of A Just Russia – For Truth

No.	Portrait	Chairmen	Took office	Left office	Co–chairmen
3		Sergey Mironov	22 February 2021	Incumbent	Zakhar Prilepin Gennady Semigin

International Connections

A Just Russia used to be a full member of the Socialist International. This is a worldwide group of social-democratic political parties. However, on 7 March 2022, the party was removed from this group. This happened because they supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The party also has friendly relationships with left-wing political parties in Latin America. They have sent greetings to meetings of the São Paulo Forum, which is a group of left-wing political parties and organizations from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Election Results

Presidential Elections

State Duma Elections

Election	Leader	Votes	%	Seats	+/–	Rank	Government
2007	Sergey Mironov	5,383,639	7.7	38 / 450		4th	Support
2011	Nikolai Levichev	8,695,522	13.2	64 / 450	26	3rd	Opposition
2016	Sergey Mironov	3,275,053	6.2	23 / 450	41	4th	Opposition
							Support
2021		4,201,715	7.5	27 / 450	4	4th	Opposition

Parties That Joined A Just Russia

Many parties have merged into A Just Russia over the years:

• Patriots of Russia (January 2021)
• For Truth (January 2021)
• Party of Social Justice (September 2008)
• United Socialist Party of Russia (May 2007)
• People's Party of the Russian Federation (April 2007)
• Party of Entrepreneurship Development (2007)
• Party of Constitutional Democrats (2007)
• The Greens (June 2009 – February 2012; later became independent again)
• Rodina (October 2006 – September 2012; later became independent again)
• Russian Pensioners' Party (October 2006 – April 2012; later became independent again)
• Russian Party of Life (October 2006)

See also

In Spanish: Rusia Justa para niños