page_title: Political career of Vladimir Putin
section_title: Third Presidential term (2012–2018)
hierarchical_section_title: Political career of Vladimir Putin / Third Presidential term (2012–2018)
caption_attribution_description: Español: La ceremonia de inauguración de Vladímir Putin como Presidente de Rusia. Русский: Церемония вступления Владимира Путина в должность Президента России.
context_page_description: The political career of Vladimir Putin concerns the career of Vladimir Putin in politics, including his current tenure as President of Russia.
context_section_description: On 4 March 2012, Putin won the 2012 Russian presidential elections in the first round, with 63.6% of the vote. While extraordinary measures were taken to make the elections transparent, including the usage of webcams on the vast majority of polling stations, the vote was criticized by Russian opposition and some international bodies for perceived irregularities. Several heads of states around the world congratulated Putin on winning elections. Chinese Premier Hu Jintao congratulated Vladimir Putin on taking office as Russian president, and wished the Russian people greater achievements in developing their country under Putin's leadership. The Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh said "Your success in these elections is an affirmation by the Russian people of your vision of a strong, prosperous and democratic Russia," and added that he "deeply appreciated the personal commitment and attention that you have brought to nurturing the India-Russia strategic partnership over the last 12 years". The President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari called the election results a "resounding victory". Venezuela President Hugo Chavez personally congratulated Putin on his victory, calling Putin "a driving force behind strategic ties of cooperation between Venezuela and Russia."
  Anti-Putin protests took place during and directly after the presidential campaign.  The most notorious protest was the 21 February Pussy Riot performance, and subsequent trial. Also, an estimated 8,000-20,000 protesters gathered in Moscow on 6 May, when eighty people were injured in confrontations with police, and 450 were arrested, with another 120 arrests taking place the following day.
  Putin was inaugurated in the Kremlin on 7 May 2012.  On his first day as President, Putin issued 14 Presidential decrees, including a lengthy one stating wide-ranging goals for the Russian economy. Other decrees concerned education, housing, skilled-labor training, relations with the European Union, the defense industry, inter-ethnic relations, and other policy areas dealt with in Putin's programme articles issued during the Presidential campaign.
  In 2012 and 2013, Putin and the United Russia backed stricter legislation against the rights of the LGBT community in Russia, first in Saint Petersburg, Archangelsk and Novosibirsk, but a law against "homosexual propaganda" (which prohibits such symbols as the rainbow flag as well as published works containing homosexual content) was adopted by State Duma in June 2013.
  In June 2013 Putin attended a televised rally of the All-Russia People's Front where he was elected head of the movement, which was set up in 2011. According to journalist Steve Rosenberg, the movement is intended to "reconnect the Kremlin to the Russian people" and one day, if necessary, replace the increasingly unpopular United Russia party that currently backs Putin.
caption: Putin taking the presidential oath at his 3rd inauguration ceremony (7 May 2012)
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