Russians may give their President Vladimir Putin soaring approval ratings, but more than half of the country's inhabitants take no interest in politics or even dislike it, a recent poll indicates.
About 30 percent of respondents said they were indifferent to Russian politics and did not care about the country's political affairs, while another 23 percent said they did not like politics and did not want to be bothered with it, the independent Levada Center pollster said in a survey released Thursday.
Another 40 percent said they closely followed political news in Russia, but did not participate in political parties or movements, according to the poll. Only 2 percent said they were active in political parties or groups, or actively supported one.
Putin's approval ratings in Russia dipped to 84 percent in late August from 87 percent at the beginning of the month, according to previous Levada Center polls, but the difference falls within the 3.4 percentage point margin of error.
The latest poll was conducted on Aug. 22-25 among 1,600 people in 134 cities and towns around Russia, and also had a margin of error of no more than 3.4 percentage points.
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