In 2017, following the expiration of the 1994 agreement between
Moscow and
Kazan which granted
Tatarstan substantial autonomy, the title of
president was expected to be replaced with
head, as it was done with other
republics in Russia. The
government of Tatarstan however resisted attempts to have the title abolished and the federal government declined to press the issue. However, shortly after
legislative elections in September 2021, deputies in the
State Duma prepared a bill to unify the titles of the leaders of all of Russia's regions to
head. The bill, seen as directly aimed at Tatarstan, would reserve the title of
president exclusively for the
president of Russia. In response, lawmakers in Tatarstan's
State Council voted against it. The bill was approved in its first reading in November. On 15 December, it was approved by the
Federation Council and subsequently signed by president
Vladimir Putin on 21 December. The law went into effect on 1 June 2022. Tatarstan's presidential secretary said that the title would remain during a transitional period throughout 2022 where the constitution was to be amended. The renaming of the post was expected to be completed by 2023. The loss of the title was perceived by many in Tatarstan as a further erosion of their autonomy within Russia. In December 2022, regional lawmakers voted to change the title of the head of the republic from
president to
rais (an Arabic title for "leader"). The title of president was seen as the last remaining symbol of federalism following the centralization reforms under
Vladimir Putin. Incumbent president
Rustam Minnikhanov however would have retained the title of president until his term expired in 2025 under transitional agreements. On 26 January 2023 Minnikhanov signed the amendments into law; however, the proposed transitional period was abandoned, forcing the title change to occur by 6 February. ==List of presidents==