The Politics of Inequality in Russia

“Tom Remington’s fine new book begins with an unexpected finding: at the sub-national level in post-transition Russia, more democratic regional regimes tend to have higher income inequality than more authoritarian. More democratic regions do perform better in most respects: earnings and tax receipts are higher, poverty lower, government more consultative with business and less predatory; while authoritarian regional regimes have lower wages and tax receipts, higher poverty, and governments that are exclusionary and predatory toward business, but still more equal income distributions. In a deeply-researched and methodologically creative study, Remington identifies the political factors contributing to this conundrum, focusing on government-business-labor relations, communist welfare state legacies, and the inability of Russia’s weak state to implement effective redistributive policies, and considers the implications for Russia’s future politics, stability, and place in the international system.”
Linda J. Cook, Brown University

“Remington has provided a sophisticated treatment of a weighty issue. The Politics of Inequality in Russia shows how distinctly political relationships and action explain why movement toward greater political openness may be correlated with a rise in income inequality. Furthermore, the work reveals that faster growth in inequality is not necessarily associated with a greater deterioration in the conditions of the worst-off. On the contrary: In absolute terms, the poor actually fared better in places where income inequality grew more rapidly. The book’s focus on regions and interregional variation is an astute one, and brings the story of post-Soviet socioeconomic transformation closer to the ground than accounts that focus on national-level macroeconomic indicators.”
Steven Fish, University of California, Berkeley

“Thomas Remington has written an outstanding book that addresses one of the most important questions in comparative politics today: the link between democracy and inequality. Few scholars know more about Russia than Remington and his knowledge is on full display in The Politics of Inequality in Russia. Remington finds that more democratic regions in Russia have experienced greater inequality, but lower poverty than more autocratic regions. Underlying these outcomes are the cooperative relations between business and the state in the democratic regions. Persuasive, accessible, and timely, The Politics of Inequality in Russia will attract a wide audience.”
Timothy Frye, Columbia University

“Remington has produced an important book on Russian political economy featuring all the rigor, comparative orientation, and deep country knowledge that have made him a leader in the field. His fascinating analysis of differences across 89 Russian regions shows that democracy has tended to increase inequality over time and that this may be, in the end, ‘the price of pluralism’ in a weak state. The Politics of Inequality in Russia will be of great value to all those interested in political economy, democratization, and postcommunist politics.”
– Henry E. Hale, The George Washington University

“By focusing on Russia’s regions, The Politics of Inequality in Russia by Thomas F. Remington considers income inequality at a meaningful, yet less commonly observed level of analysis… [It] demonstrates how good scholarship can marry detailed knowledge of a country with sophisticated statistical analysis to shed new light on a topic of interest to a broad audience. The book should attract the readership of scholars working on Russia, political economy, and political science alike.”
Bryon J. Moraski, University of Florida, Canadian Slavonic Papers

"Thomas Remington has written an ingenious book on the relationship between economic inequality and democracy, and produced what may be the best book on the political economy of Russia that we have."
Political Studies