The parliament of North Ossetia–Alania has re-elected Sergei Menyailo as head of the republic for a second five-year term. Sixty-six deputies took part in the vote: 61 backed the incumbent, while five voted for Oleg Varnavin, deputy general director of Selengaуголь LLC. No one voted for the third candidate, Chermen Dudati, a regional parliament deputy and director of the V. V. Tkhapsaev North Ossetian Academic Theatre.

Formally, Menyailo, like the heads of other Russian regions, was not the only candidate in the process. His candidacy was submitted to President Vladimir Putin for presentation to parliament alongside Varnavin, nominated by A Just Russia, and Dudati, nominated by the Communist Party. Under Russia’s established political system — the so-called power vertical — the incumbent’s nominal rivals effectively served the procedural role of supporting candidates in a predetermined process. The question of who would lead the republic, as Novy Dosh has previously reported, is decided long before the vote — within the Russian presidential administration.

Direct elections for the head of North Ossetia were abolished in 2013. At the time, 52 deputies of the republican parliament supported the decision, six voted against and three abstained. Since then, residents of the republic have not directly elected their regional leader: candidates are put forward by the Russian president, while parliament formally approves the preferred candidate for the region’s top post.

It was under this system that Menyailo secured a second term at the helm of the Republic of North Ossetia–Alania.

Immediately after his re-election, Sergei Menyailo took office as head of the republic. He delivered his oath in both Russian and Ossetian.

From military service to regional leadership

Sergei Menyailo was born on 22 August 1960 in Alagir, a town in North Ossetia. In 1983, he graduated from the S. M. Kirov Caspian Higher Naval School and subsequently continued his military career.

Over the years, Menyailo served with the Northern and Black Sea Fleets, the Caspian Flotilla and at the Novorossiysk Naval Base. From 2004 to 2009, he was chief of staff and commander of the Novorossiysk Naval Base.

During the 2008 armed conflict in South Ossetia, Menyailo commanded a Black Sea Fleet task force in the Abkhazia direction. From 2009 to 2012, he served as deputy commander of the Black Sea Fleet. He was promoted to vice admiral in 2007.

His move into senior Russian politics came in 2014. Menyailo took part in the formation of the so-called self-defence units in Crimea. Following Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and Sevastopol, he headed the state-owned enterprise Crimean Sea Ports.

That same year, Vladimir Putin appointed Menyailo acting governor of Sevastopol. In the autumn, his candidacy was approved by the city’s Legislative Assembly. Menyailo remained in the post until 2016, when he submitted his resignation.

On 28 July 2016, the president appointed him his plenipotentiary representative in the Siberian Federal District. Menyailo worked in Novosibirsk and held the position until his next appointment.

In April 2021, by presidential decree, he became acting head of North Ossetia following the resignation of Vyacheslav Bitarov, who had led the republic since 2016. Later that year, Menyailo was elected to his first term as regional head. The local parliament has now extended his tenure for another five years.

The republic under Menyailo

During Menyailo’s first term, the population of North Ossetia declined. According to Russia’s state statistics agency, Rosstat, 678,800 people lived in the republic in 2025. In 2021, when Menyailo took over the region, the population stood at 690,798.

At the same time, the republican authorities report growth in economic indicators. During a meeting with Vladimir Putin, Menyailo said that North Ossetia’s gross regional product reached 355 billion roubles in 2025. According to Menyailo, the figure increased by 50 billion roubles, or 16.4%, over the year compared with 2024.

Menyailo remains one of United Russia’s key representatives in the republic. In the State Duma election, he is heading the party’s regional candidate group.

According to his published income declaration, the head of North Ossetia earned 19.5 million roubles in 2025. He held just over 15.3 million roubles across six bank accounts. The declaration also lists a 43.8-square-metre flat in North Ossetia, a RIDA vehicle — the company specialises in producing armoured vehicles — and a Toyota Land Cruiser.