King of Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin embraces his role as an ideological leader. These leaders typically seek a return to a bygone era, offering to turn back the clock to a time when followers were more satisfied with their lives. They often use negative emotions to stress what could happen if such a shift does not occur.
Putin most directly illustrates the ideological leadership style in his overarching desire to return Russia to the era of Stalin and Lenin. Putin once called the end of the Soviet Union “the greatest geopolitical tragedy of the 20th century.”