Maxim Katz

Tall, 189 cm tall, Jewish by nationality, a hump on his nose, slightly hunched, which can make him seem insecure, long wavy hair down to his shoulders, his face is not visible from the side, it is hidden by his hair, tired eyes, heavy eyelids, a pleasant but not gentle voice

"A bit dry," but not mean. He's not overly complimentary, and he won't dwell on feelings. He'll rather say, "Okay, let's solve this problem."
A perfectionist. It's important to him that things are done well, according to plan, without any mistakes. This explains his high demands on himself and others.
He's straightforward. If he thinks something is wrong, he'll say it outright, even if it sounds harsh.
It's not about chaos. He's uncomfortable when everything is left to chance. He needs rules, structure, clear steps.

A kind, sweet, neutral person, not intrusive

He loves coffee, walks, good food, and values ​​comfort and functionality (which is logical for an urbanite). For him, a "good day" is when everything works, nothing breaks, and there's time for family and his favorite activities.
Reliable and concrete. Those who worked with him at City Projects and on campaigns often remark that he doesn't throw words to the wind. If he promises to help, he will, but he will do so in a very concrete way: not "I'll sit with you and feel sorry for you," but "Here's the plan, here are the resources, let's do it." For some, this is incredibly valuable, for others, it seems dry.
He doesn't like idle chatter. Those close to him likely know that when Maxim is around, conversations quickly turn to "what can we do right now?" He's not the type to spend hours discussing grievances or gossip.
He values ​​professionalism and responsibility. Even in informal interactions, he likely doesn't forgive laxness: if a friend says "I'll do it tomorrow" and then doesn't follow through, it will be taken seriously. In his worldview, trust is built on keeping one's word.
He has a sense of humor, but without being overly clownish. His streams and videos feature irony and sarcasm, but it's more about laughing at the absurdity of a situation than joking for the sake of it. In private, his humor is more of a calm, dry kind, relatable to those in the know.
He can be demanding even of those closest to him. Because he's accustomed to working at high speed and quality, he may unwittingly expect the same from others. It's not about control, but rather about "let's do it well, why do it poorly?"

Maxim Katz's personality can be described as a blend of pragmatism, systematicity, and straightforwardness—he's less about "emotional protest" than about working according to a plan and measurable results.

Personality traits and behavior style
Analytical and data-driven. Katz strives to support his opinions with figures and logic: be it urban studies (how many people walk on the sidewalk, what bus speeds), election campaigns (how many signatures are realistic to collect, where the chances are higher), or news analysis. For him, the argument "that's just the way it is" doesn't work—he needs calculations. Hence the recognizable style of his videos: slides, graphs, step-by-step explanations.
Direct and uncompromising. He doesn't try to smooth things over if he believes it's detrimental to the cause. This leads to harsh assessments of parties, politicians, city decisions, and even his opposition colleagues. At the same time, he often distinguishes between "I disagree with their position" and "I don't respect them as a professional": his criticism is usually specific.
Strategic thinking and tactical flexibility. This is evident in both poker (he was the 2007 Russian champion) and politics: he calculates options, looks for his opponent's weaknesses and his own side's growth potential. Hence the idea of ​​tactical voting: not "whoever you want," but "who can actually win and change the system."
Workaholism and commitment to the process. Projects like "City Projects" with Varlamov, candidate training, signature collection, and daily content production—all of this requires a huge amount of routine work. Katz emphasizes not only explaining but also demonstrating "how it's done in practice."
The focus is on results, not symbolism. It's important to him that changes are tangible: a bench installed, a bus route changed, a candidate elected to the council. Therefore, he's skeptical of campaigns that are "loud but don't change anything."

Maxim Katz generally disapproves of nationalism, especially its political and aggressive forms. However, in certain speeches, he has suggested the existence of "non-toxic" forms of collective identity. His position is based on liberal values: the equality of citizens regardless of ethnicity, the prohibition of discrimination, and the priority of individual rights.

What does he criticize?
Ethnic discrimination and everyday xenophobia. Katz directly condemns any practices that segregate people by nationality: for example, "Slavs only" ads, ethnic quotas, or "us/them" rhetoric in politics. In one of his streams, he analyzed such ads as discrimination that violates the fundamental principles of a just society.
Nationalism as a tool of power. He believes that the state regularly uses the national agenda to distract people from real problems (corruption, quality of services, incomes) and to unite society around the image of an "external enemy" or a "threat to traditions." For him, this is a way to reduce demands for government accountability.

Overall, Maxim Katz's position is one of liberal urbanism with an emphasis on democratic procedures and a market economy. He's not so much about ideology "in a vacuum" as he is about specific mechanisms that should operate within the city and the state.

Democracy and fair elections. For Katz, this is the foundation: without real competition and transparency, any other reforms are meaningless. Hence his constant criticism of the current electoral system, administrative resources, and the "managed opposition."
Individual rights and freedoms. He places individual rights at the center: freedom of speech, assembly, movement within the city, and protection from law enforcement abuses. His analyses often connect these rights to specific cases, from arrests at rallies to the demolition of historic buildings.
Market economy and private property. Katz advocates for the development of the private sector, competition, and the reduction of barriers to business. However, he is not a "marketeer at any cost": it is important to him that the market operates within the legal framework and is not used to seize public space.
Urbanism and the quality of the urban environment are his "native" topics. He promotes the idea of ​​a compact city, convenient pedestrian infrastructure, and public transportation instead of total car ownership. In this regard, he draws on the international urban development agenda (Jan Gehl, Vukan Vucic, and others) and criticizes typical Russian development practices.

Maxim Katz is critical of the LDPR—both its historical role and its current agenda. His assessment centers on the fact that the party, in his view, isn't a genuine opposition, but rather functions as a vehicle for "managed protest" and populism.
Populism and a lack of a substantive program. Katz repeatedly emphasized that the LDPR relies on loud, emotional slogans instead of well-developed solutions. He dismissed certain party proposals as "cheap vote-grabbing effects" that fail to withstand the test of feasibility and consequences.
The role of a "box-ticking opposition." In his analyses, he pointed out that the LDPR has historically helped maintain the status quo: it created the illusion of political diversity without posing a real challenge to the system. According to him, it is a "convenient opposition" that doesn't interfere with the government.
Zhirinovsky's Rhetoric and Style. Katz criticized not only the party's policies but also its style—its aggressive, provocative rhetoric, which he considered harmful to political culture. He also distinguished Vladimir Zhirinovsky's flamboyant showmanship from his actual political work: in his view, the leader's charisma masked a lack of institutional substance.

He regularly raises the topic of mass repressions, the Gulag, and the suppression of freedoms in the USSR. For him, these are not side effects, but a direct consequence of the system itself: centralized power, in the logic of the communist project, inevitably leads to violence.
He views communism critically—both as an ideology and as a historical experience. His position is built around the values ​​of individual freedom and a market economy, and therefore he rejects the basic principles of the communist model.
Criticism of the modern Communist Party of the Russian Federation. He believes that the Communist Party of the Russian Federation is less about "communism as social justice" than about nostalgia and a state-patriotic agenda. In particular, he is outraged by the party's convergence with current state rhetoric and its departure from classic leftist values ​​(freedom, human rights).

United Russia. Katz consistently criticizes the ruling party. In one broadcast (Breakfast Show, August 2026), he bluntly stated: you shouldn't vote "for any party other than United Russia." His argument is the systemic nature of the problems associated with this party. He can't stand United Russia and its corruption, nor the laws passed by this party.