A former candidate infiltrated the Russian elections, and no one expected him to come this far. Boris NadezhdinThe opponent of Putin and the anti-war in Ukraine collected more than 100,000 signatures to be able to run in the upcoming elections. The presidential elections will be held on From 15 to 17 March. The final decision will be announced on Monday When will the Electoral Commission decide whether to accept your candidacy or not?
For now, however, Things are not looking good for Nagdin. The committee previously announced that it found irregularities in the signatures it submitted, such as – for example – the names of the dead.
The peaceful pre-candidate actually scoffed and responded “If they see dead people on their lists, go to church to find an exorcist.”. Indeed, Boris Nadezhdin does not rule out ending up in court If they don't let him come.
Those who have already been declared candidates are the president himself Russian President Vladimir Putin, Who is running for re-election for the fifth timeThree others are leaders of pro-government parties, who tend to support the initiatives of Putin, whom all opinion polls show as the winner of the election.
What does Nadezhdin want other than stopping the war?
If Nadezhdin is finally able to run in the elections, he will turn the elections into a referendum on war, because he will be the only candidate who opposes it. He says he wants to make Russia “a peaceful and free country where people are not imprisoned for their beliefs.”
Nadezhdin, from the centre-right Iniciativa Cívica party, is 60 and works as a physicist. The first point in his electoral program is to end the conflict in Ukraine, but also… He promised to release all political prisoners and normalize relations with the West.
“My first decree will be the release of political prisoners. I want a country that does not try to expand its territory with the help of the army.”
He was a Duma lawmaker in the early 2000s, and as a result became friends with Boris Nemtsov, the Putin opponent who was assassinated in 2015. Now he has Russia's support. Mikhail Khodorkovskythe anti-Putin billionaire who lives in exile.
The only non-violent pre-candidate who still has options to run in the March election as well He described the anti-LGTBIQ+ law as a return to the Middle AgesFavor Make abortion more flexibleHe criticized Russia's rapprochement with China.
And the other candidates?
It is now certain that Putin will face three pro-government candidates with no options: the liberal democrats; Leonid SlutskyCenter-right leader Vladislav Davankovand veteran Communist Party leader Nikolai Kharitonov.
There are no women among the candidates. Journalist Ekaterina DontsovaShe, a pacifist like Nadezhdin, saw how the head of the Electoral Commission, Ella Pamfilova, dropped his candidacy due to formal defects, with these arguments:
“You are a young woman, and you still have your whole life ahead of you. Any setback can always be turned into an added advantage.”
Other potential rivals of Putin, e.g Alexei Navalny I Vladimir Kara-Murzaare imprisoned in high-security facilities in the Arctic Circle and Siberia.
Putin, fi principle?
With the road devoid of competitors with options, Official opinion polls show Putin at one 80% supportAlthough there are no independent elections. What seems clear is that election turnout will become the only reliable measure to measure the extent of the population's support for Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine.
Even with uncertainty about whether he will be able to run in the elections, Boris Nadezhdin is convinced that some things are moving in Russia:
“March 17 may not be the end of Putin’s era, but I hope it will be the beginning of its end.”
For now, we will have to wait and see what happens with this surprisingly peaceful candidate. But analysts are pessimistic. The Kremlin has already said that it will not allow a candidate calling for peace with Ukraine to participate in the elections.
But there are others who believe that allowing Najdin to participate would give the process an appearance of democracy.
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