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Vladimir Putin says he will run for president again in Russia\u2019s elections in March 2024, in a move that could see him retain power until at least 2030.<\/span><\/p>\n Putin made the announcement Friday after a ceremony at the Kremlin, the official residence of the Russian president.<\/p>\n Putin will bid for his fifth presidential term at the elections, set to take place on March 17, 2024, as he aims to solidify his continuous hold on power as head of state or prime minister for more than two decades.<\/p>\n The upcoming elections will also mark the first time that residents of the occupied Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, annexed by Russia during the conflict, will participate in the presidential elections.<\/p>\n The international community previously condemned local elections in these regions, organized by Russian-backed officials, as a sham.<\/p>\n The Kremlin has not yet released an official statement on Putin\u2019s candidacy.<\/p>\n Putin became acting prime minister of Russia in August 1999, before unexpectedly being handed the presidency by then-President Boris Yeltsin on New Year\u2019s Eve of that year.<\/p>\n He served two four-year terms as president before stepping aside in 2008, as he was not constitutionally permitted to run for another presidential term. He endorsed Dmitry Medvedev, who replaced him as president, while Putin took the role of prime minister for a second time.<\/p>\n But he regained the presidency in 2012 and has not relinquished his grip on power since. After winning re-election in 2018, Putin then signed a law in 2021 which paved the way for him to run for two more six-year terms.<\/p>\n The changes to the law means that Putin, 71, could potentially extend his rule until 2036, by which time he will be in his mid-80s and his rule will be well into its third decade.<\/p>\n