Following Senate approval, Putin's signature is all that remains for legislation raising Russia's retirement age

Russia's Federation Council has approved controversial legislation that will raise the country's retirement age (from 55 to 60 for women, and from 60 to 65 for men). One hundred and forty-nine senators voted in favor of the bill, just five voted against it, and three senators abstained.

Once the president signs the bill, it will become law. Vladimir Putin recently endorsed the unpopular initiative in a national television broadcast.

Since the government announced plans to raise the retirement age, Russians have expressed less support for President Putin and especially the ruling political party, United Russia, and thousands of opponents have staged protests across the country. United Russia’s leadership believes its poor showing in certain regional elections earlier this fall was a direct result of the party’s support for pension reform.

In mid-September, a poll by the independent Levada center showed that 85 percent of the country opposes raising the retirement age to 65 for men, and just 11 percent of Russians support the policy. Slightly more Russians (88 percent) oppose raising the retirement age to 60 for women, and just 9 percent support the policy. At the same time, the percentage of Russians who said they would join any street protests in their area against pension reform dropped 53 percent to 35 percent.