Unlike in Western Europe, there is no demand for exclusion of Muslims from the Russian “political market.” There are two reasons for this: the “autochthonous” nature of Islam in Russia and the specific features of the current political system. Due to these two factors, parties with an openly Islamophobic agenda are unlikely to emerge, and public articulation of negative attitudes toward Islam and Muslims is hampered. At the same time, Russia is experiencing tensions similar to those in Western European societies.