Elections to the Second State Duma and the Orthodox clergy (based on the materials of the secular press)

Importance. The issue of the Orthodox clergy involvement in elections to the State Duma of the Russian Empire continues to be one of the most challenging and under-researched. The purpose of the study is to examine the response of secular periodicals to the Orthodox clerics involvement in the elections for the Second State Duma.

Materials and Methods. The subject of the study is the perception of representatives from various socio-political backgrounds regarding the Orthodox clergy involvement in elections to the State Duma as presented in Soviet periodicals. The research has been conducted using methods of con tent analysis, comparative analysis, and typology, based on materials from leading periodicals published in the Russian Empire, both party-affiliated and non-partisan.

Results and Discussions. It is revealed how representatives of various public figures treated the Orthodox clergy participation in the elections to the State Duma. The following key points are highlighted, which are discussed in the periodical press: the clergy role in the political process, the clergy participation in the parties’ activities, the attitude of priest G.S. Petrov, the Orthodox clergy and the results of the elections to the State Duma.

Conclusions. The Orthodox clergy is seen as a significant factor in the election campaign. For right-wing publications, the priests acted as their allies, with the help of which it is planned to bring as many monarchists as possible to the Duma. At the same time, some representatives of the right-wing press are against the participation of priests in the elections. For the Cadets, the Social Democrats and the periodicals close to them, the priests acted as agents of the political will of the bureaucracy, which sought to increase the number of conservative-minded deputies in the Duma.

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