The constitutional development of modern Russia

   The subject is trends in the constitutional development of modern Russia.

   The purpose is to confirm or refute the hypothesis that constitutional principles, including amendments to the Constitution, are a universal tool for responding to modern challenges to the Russian state.

   They do not determine the specific vector of the country's development. The methodology of the research includes formal legal interpretation of Russian Constitution and provisions of Russian legislation on self-government as well as content analysis of Russian media.

   Main results. The key factors influencing the constitutional development of Russia are highlighted and analyzed. There are the 2020 amendments to the Constitution of Russia, which legally consolidated the unity of public power, and modern challenges to the country's economic system. It is noted that the provisions of the amendments to the Constitution on the unity of public authority are framework and do not predetermine the strengthening of trends in centralization, efficiency and discipline in state building. The tendencies of centralization of public power on the verge of emasculating the very essence of local self-government, its self-governing nature, manifested themselves in the new Federal Law No. 33-FZ dated March 20, 2025 “On the general principles of organizing local self-Government in a unified system of public authority”. The trends of centralization, diligence and discipline in state building are narrowing the “wiggle room” in responding to new challenges, the nature of which is constantly changing, taking into account the phenomenal scientific and technological progress and related social transformations. The unified system of public authority turns into a vertical of power through the use of a purely administrative method. Although the inclusion of local self-government in a single system of public authority in itself made it possible to effectively set up interaction and complicity of local self-government bodies and state authorities. Such interaction is necessary when the direct provision of the vital activity of the population could not be provided solely by one level of government due to limited resources or the complexity of issues that make it difficult to delineate the powers to solve them.

   Conclusions. The methodology of constitutional law as a vehicle of constitutional values makes it possible to find answers to the modern challenges of digitalization, inequality and unfair international competition.

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