In his brief tenure in office, Putin has managed to turn back two incursions into Dagestan by Chechan rebels and at the very least act in charge of events in the Caucasus region on Russia's turbulent southern border. Additionally, he is making noises like a domestic policy leader. In the past few weeks he has ordered the government to come up with a strategy for allowing Russians to buy their own apartments and thus, has begun a long awaited strategy for implementing a popular variety of private property ownership. Sources say he has asked for a private property housing program within a month. One of the reasons the concept of private property hasn't caught on in the past is that mortgage lenders were not protected from default.
Evictions are notoriously difficult and complicated.
All of these efforts in pursuing some sort of direction have made him appear like a leader. Economic czar Chubais has been associated in the minds of Russians with miserable economic conditions and a failure to implement even marginally effective reforms. Nonetheless, at present, Vladimir Putin has a 65 percent approval rating. With Russian Duma elections coming up on December 19th, the struggle for supremacy seems to be shaping up into a three-man configuration. Opinion polls show former Prime Minister Yevgevny Primakov's Fatherland Party, and also the Communists predicted to do well in the elections.