Russian lawmakers adopt the second reading of major constitutional reform legislation

Russian federal lawmakers have adopted the second reading of legislation that would introduce sweeping reforms to the nation's Constitution. There were roughly 390 amendments to the second reading of the draft law, according to State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin. Most of these amendments were prepared by a special working group that included State Duma deputies, senators, and public figures. The Putin administration also introduced several amendments directly.

In a rare address to the State Duma on March 10, Vladimir Putin supported an amendment by deputy Valentina Tereshkova to zero his presidential term clock, so long as Russia's Constitutional Court upholds the amendment. This would allow Putin to run for two more terms in office, potentially extending his presidency to 2036.

In January 2020, during his annual state-of-the-nation speech, Vladimir Putin unexpectedly proposed a series of sweeping changes to Russia’s Constitution.