Forwarded from ЯКУТСК
YAKUTSK, Russia — Admirers call her the “Terminator,” the “Iron Lady” and the “Queen of the North.” But that is hardly the only unusual thing about Sardana V. Avksentieva.
She is the first female mayor of Yakutsk, the capital of Yakutia, a sprawling region in eastern Siberia that constitutes 20 percent of Russia. What’s more, analysts say she won the office last year in what was considered a fair election, a rarity in Russia.
Most unusually, she has built up a cultlike following nationally on social media. This stems from a series of highly publicized efforts to cut costs — virtually unprecedented for any Russian official.
Notably, Ms. Avksentieva sold off the mayoral Toyota Land Cruiser, making do with a simple sedan, and dismissed an official who planned a $16,000 New Year’s Eve celebration at public expense. She flies economy.
A typical comment on her Instagram account read, “Clone her please for every city!”
Ms. Avksentieva, 49, (her full name is pronounced Sar-DAH-nah ahv-keh-SEN-tee-AY-vah) laughs off her unexpected fan club.
“I am surprised by that, sometimes I don’t believe it is about me,” she said during an interview in a City Hall conference room. “People saw something different, so they began to spread the word whether I wanted them to or not.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/30/world/europe/siberia-mayor-yakutsk.html
She is the first female mayor of Yakutsk, the capital of Yakutia, a sprawling region in eastern Siberia that constitutes 20 percent of Russia. What’s more, analysts say she won the office last year in what was considered a fair election, a rarity in Russia.
Most unusually, she has built up a cultlike following nationally on social media. This stems from a series of highly publicized efforts to cut costs — virtually unprecedented for any Russian official.
Notably, Ms. Avksentieva sold off the mayoral Toyota Land Cruiser, making do with a simple sedan, and dismissed an official who planned a $16,000 New Year’s Eve celebration at public expense. She flies economy.
A typical comment on her Instagram account read, “Clone her please for every city!”
Ms. Avksentieva, 49, (her full name is pronounced Sar-DAH-nah ahv-keh-SEN-tee-AY-vah) laughs off her unexpected fan club.
“I am surprised by that, sometimes I don’t believe it is about me,” she said during an interview in a City Hall conference room. “People saw something different, so they began to spread the word whether I wanted them to or not.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/30/world/europe/siberia-mayor-yakutsk.html
NY Times
In Siberia, a First Female Mayor Builds a National Profile (Published 2019)
Women are a rarity in Russian politics, as was the free election that brought Sardana Avksentieva to power. But what really sets her apart is her thriftiness.
600 миллионов самых настоящих японских рублей пришли в экономику Якутии на финансирование третьей очереди знакового проекта иностранных инвесторов. Проект сопровождается Агентством с самого начала. Грандиозная победа!