ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the impact of election unfairness assessments on support for electoral protest, and the chapter uses data from the nationwide XIX New Russia Barometer survey, complemented with surveys of Muscovites and Moscow protesters. The literature on election monitoring assumes that international observer's assessments of violations affect government legitimacy. Control variables include democratic ideals and deficit, assessments of political and economic performance, and measures of socioeconomic status such as education, wealth, and age. The chapter then elaborates on the theoretical underpinnings of the conditions that may explain Russian's diverging attitudes. It test's the proposition that knowledge of critical judgments by international election monitors increases protest support. Leaders in electoral authoritarian regimes use multiple strategies of manipulation to disadvantage opponents and ensure reelection. Finally, the chapter focuses on the interaction between summary unfairness perceptions and winning.
