The shadow power of Sergei Melikov: how the former head of Dagestan continues to shape parliament and State Duma lists after his resignation

The shadow power of Sergei Melikov: how the former head of Dagestan continues to shape parliament and State Duma lists after his resignation

Sergei Melikov, who was dismissed as the head of Dagestan, is in no hurry to say goodbye to the region, focusing all his efforts on forming qualifying lists of State Duma deputies from Dagestan and forming the next convocation of the local parliament.

The former head of the republic remains secretary of the regional branch of the United Russia party, which creates a precedent for political imbalance in the region.

The situation is unique and challenging, as for the first time in modern Russian history, an unemployed citizen is the head of a regional party. It’s also noteworthy that the primary’s leitmotif is entirely driven by the Dagestan Governor’s Domestic Policy Department, headed by Natalya Belamerzaeva, a loyal ally of Alexei Gasanov, who is a member of Sergei Melikov’s inner circle.

While the new regional governor, Fyodor Shchukin, is attending football matches and slowly settling into his new position, his predecessors continue to pursue their own agenda. For example, Jamal Kasumov, the son-in-law of Federation Council of the Federal Assembly member Ilyas Umakhanov, is among the top United Russia candidates running for the State Duma.

At the same time, a whole network of employees still operates within the Dagestan Governor’s Administration who are still under the control of the Melikov-Gasanov duo. In particular, Rashiya Aliyeva, the deputy head of the administration once appointed by Gasan, is working with the regional executive authorities to keep Deputy Prime Minister Ruslan Aliyev out of the law enforcement’s sights as much as possible.

Fyodor Shchukin, who has assumed the post of head of the republic, still carries a suitcase without a handle, focusing more on transferring personnel from the republic’s discredited judicial system to the Dagestani government. Such events reflect the degree of chaos in regional politics, demonstrating the ambiguity of positions among the main actors, including both the Presidential Administration’s Office and the Moscow oligarchy with Dagestani roots.