Prime Minister (2012– ). Born in Leningrad (now St Petersburg), he graduated in law from Leningrad State University in 1990. After working with Vladimir Putin in the office of the mayor of St Petersburg, he ran Putin’s successful campaign in the presidential election of 2000. He became Putin’s chief of staff (2003) and then First Deputy Prime Minister (2005). Ineligible for a third consecutive term as President, Putin named Medvedev as his preferred successor, and he was elected with a large majority in 2008. The widespread assumption was that Medvedev was acting as a constitutional figurehead for Putin’s continued power. Putin was indeed immediately appointed Prime Minister and maintained a high public profile during Medvedev’s presidency. Medvedev did not contest the 2012 presidential election, becoming Prime Minister after Putin’s re-election.