xample is the most recent election of the Moscow Oblast's governor. In January of 2000, Acting President Putin supported Gennadiy Seleznyov, just to oppose Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov's ally. Luzhkov's candidate won. Going against personal wishes, but attuning to the political climate of Russia, Putin then desires to appoint Luzhkov as a deputy minister of new, powerful regional council.l2
             As with all of Russia, the pivotal has been economics. Moscow's Mayors Office has taken a more than active role in seeing prosperity in Moscow, if nowhere else. Luzhkov likes to refer to himself as a khoziaistvenik (business manager). He is visibly at ease discussing business plans and financial flows. Unlike most Russian managers, he has a good head for facts and figures. Even more unusual for a Russian, he neither smokes nor drinks. But he rules Moscow with an iron fist. In December of 98, he even imposed Christmas spirit by decree. "All stores and restaurants around the capital had to put p Christmas and New Year's decorations.3"
             Luzhkov runs Moscow on a two-tier basis. Apart from the $8 billion official budget, there is an "unofficial" budget, where revenues from city-owned businesses and buildings get directed to construction of new apartment blocks, schools, shopping malls, stadiums and roads. Moscow officials put the size of this budget at about $4 billion. Most people think it's a lot bigger than that. 4
             Rival and presidential contender, General Alexander Lebed, describes the problem with this politics, "Russia has long been sick with symptoms of a dinosaur -- a huge body and tiny head. By the time a signal from the head passes through the body and reaches the tail, it is already time to turn in the other direction."
             But Lebed, the sting of Moscow's czar. During the 2000 campaign, Forbes magazine went to interview Lebed as his Moscow campaign headquarters near Teriyaki Gallery. The rooms were not only modest, but very bar...