Gebliev was left speechless after hearing Gryzlov's remarks.
Because Gryzlov had a point!
As Gryzlov had said, Medvedev had not received unanimous approval within the entire faction. It was only because the Kremlin was strongly backing him, and no other competitors had emerged within the faction, that most faction members had tacitly accepted him.
Why were Gebliev and the others so anxious now? Wasn't it because another powerful contender had emerged within the faction?
Seeing Gebliev lower his head in silence, Gryzlov's expression softened somewhat. He sighed and continued,
"Ah, in many matters, people simply cannot help themselves.
I... I understand your concerns, but I hope you can understand my difficulties as well. Looking at it from another angle, my running in the election is not necessarily a bad thing for the faction.
The current situation is that Medvedev, Rosiana, and I are the three most competitive candidates.
But if we rank the three of us again, then without being modest, the strongest combination should be Zhirinov and me, while Medvedev and Rosiana are evenly matched.
No matter how you look at it, that position will most likely still belong to our faction in the end.
The only difference is whether I or Medvedev gets it. That will not have much impact on the faction.
What I can guarantee is that if I ultimately win, I will still put the faction's interests first. None of you need have any concerns. You understand that..."
What Gryzlov meant was, "The faction's interests come first, the election second"!
Everyone could compete fairly and openly, without getting worked up. That position would basically still belong to the Silovik Group, and the faction's interests would not be harmed.
Naturally, the Kremlin could continue supporting Medvedev, but it could not stop Gryzlov from winning over faction