Soskovets campaign strategy

This article is part of a series about Boris Yeltsin
Early life Presidency Yeltsinism CPSU membership 26th 27th Politburo 26th 27th Central Committee 28th Congress Elections 1991 campaign 1996 campaign (Vote or lose) Loans for shares Semibankirschina Soskovets campaign strategy Xerox affair First term 1st inauguration Gaidar Cabinet August Coup 1st Chernomyrdin Cabinet Constitutional conference 1993 crisis 1st Chechen War International trips ("Circling over Shannon" diplomatic incident) Second term 2nd inauguration Ruble crisis 2nd Chechen War Resignation International trips Post-Presidency Presidential Center Presidential Library Illness Death and state funeral Media gallery
v t e

The Soskovets campaign strategy refers to the strategy devised by Oleg Soskovets for Boris Yeltsin's 1996 reelection campaign for the Presidency of Russia.^[1] This strategy served as the initial template for Yeltsin's campaign before being discarded by March 1996.^[1][2]

The strategy was created under the premise that, in order to defeat nationalists and protofacist candidates in the 1996 election, Yeltsin would need to co-opt their policies.^[1][2] The strategy, however, failed to produce a rise in Yeltsin's poll numbers. The strategy was also a partial motive for Yeltsin's aggressive response to Chechen discord. His aggressive response in Chechnya initiated a highly unpopular war and consequentially had a significantly negative impact on his approval rating.^[1]

A plethora of coinciding factors persuaded Yeltsin to officially abandon the strategy by mid-March 1996.^[1]