Sredi aktorov politicheskikh protsessov elity zanimayut osoboe mesto. Prakticheski vse sovremennye elitologi soglasny v tom, chto elity igrayut dominiruyushchuyu rol" v politicheskom razvitii postsovetskoy Rossii. Regional"nye politicheskie elity – eto osobye sotsial"nye gruppy, kotorye yavlyayutsya sub"ektom prinyatiya vazhnykh strategicheskikh resheniy v sfere politiki. Monografiya posvyashchena issledovaniyu transformatsii regional"nykh politicheskikh elit sovremennoy Rossii. V rabote rassmotreny metodologicheskie podkhody k izucheniyu elit, sposoby elitoobrazovaniya i kharakter otnosheniy mezhdu vnutrielitnymi gruppami, bol"shoe vnimanie udeleno voprosam sotsial"nogo sostava i rekrutirovaniya regional"nykh politicheskikh elit v postsovetskiy period. V prikladnom aspekte materialy knigi pozvolyayut osmyslit" mekhanizm vzaimodeystviya sub"ektov regional"noy politiki i motivy politicheskikh orientatsiy elit.