There are signs that war opponent Boris Nadezhdin will be excluded from the presidential election in Russia. He was informed by the electoral commission that 15 percent of the signatures he submitted for his candidacy were invalid – three times as many as allowed.
According to presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin, the Russian election authority found numerous irregularities in his application documents. A working group of the Central Election Commission found “an error rate of more than 15 percent” in the signatures he submitted on January 31 in support of his candidacy, the Kremlin critic explained on Monday in online networks. Nadezhdin wants to challenge incumbent Vladimir Putin in the March election.
According to Nadezhdin, the information was based on an initial check of 60,000 of the signatures he submitted. On Wednesday, the liberal opposition politician submitted more than the necessary 100,000 signatures to the Central Election Authority. When the Electoral Commission checks its validity, the error rate may not be more than five percent. “Errors” in the registration documents could result in Nadezhdin’s exclusion from the election.
Boris Nadezhdin is the only opposition candidate
Nadezhdin said he would appeal the decision to the Supreme Court if the electoral authority did not recognize his candidacy, Nadezhdin wrote on Telegram. A final decision is expected on February 7th.
As a party-nominated candidate, Nadezhdin had to collect 100,000 signatures in at least 40 Russian regions to run in the election. President Vladimir Putin, who has decided to run as an independent rather than as a candidate of the ruling United Russia party, needs 300,000 signatures. According to his followers, he has already raised over 3.5 million.
The 60-year-old Nadezhdin is the only remaining opposition candidate. The ex-MP has been criticizing long-time President Putin and the Kremlin’s military offensive in Ukraine for weeks. Long lines formed across the country in January as supporters of the challenger lined up to sign their signatures to help him register as an official candidate for the March presidential election.
Russia: Putin’s re-election is considered certain
The presidential election will take place from March 15 to 17, around two years after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin has repeatedly cited administrative errors to prevent opposition candidates from registering their candidacy. Putin announced his candidacy for a fifth term as president in December.
The 71-year-old’s re-election is considered certain. However, Nadezhdin surprised some observers with his sharp criticism of what the government called a “special military operation” war against Ukraine. Recently, after numerous heating failures in the cold winter, he criticized the fact that Russia could afford to spend more on its citizens if it did not invest so much money in the military. His outspoken comments about the war have fueled speculation that he could be barred from running or forced to resign, citing a technicality.
Source: Stern
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