The candidacy of Mr. Mikhalchuk will now have to be approved by the Arkhangelsk regional parliament.
According to Vedomosti, Mikhalchuk was fired from his post in Yakutsk after a conflict with regional governor. He was subsequently quickly hired by Gazprom.
The situation with Mr. Mikhachuk is not unlike the situation in Arkhangelsk with the now dismissed city mayor Aleksandr Donskoy. Mr. Donskoy himself praises Putin for his choice of Ilya Mikhalcuk. –He is among the best managers in Russia, the ex-mayor says to Rosbaltnord.ru. -Putin’s proposal is a pleasant surprise, no one of the potential candidates did not fit in, said Donskoy. I know Mr. Mikhalchuk as the mayor of Yakutsk. He was my teacher and an example to follow when I was mayor.
As reported by BarentsObserver, Head of the Northwest Russian Federal District Ilya Klebanov last week proposed former Northern Navy commander Mikhail Motsak as new Arkhangelsk governor. However, President Putin and his was administration wanted it otherwise, and instead now presents the candidacy of Ilya Mikhalchuk.
The powers of Nikolay Kiselyov is running out on 14 April. The governor, who by many has been considered a weak leader, last year requested the confidence of President Putin for another period, but has not yet got such. His badly handled relations with local mayor Aleksandr Donskoy has further weakened his position.
