Russia bars anti-war Putin critic Boris Nadezhdin from election
Russian authorities have barred Boris Nadezhdin, the only anti-war presidential hopeful from running against Vladimir Putin in next month’s presidential election.
Russian authorities have barred the only anti-war presidential campaigner from running against President Vladimir Putin in next month’s election, heading off a challenge from a man who garnered surprise levels of support as he channeled simmering discontent.
Boris Nadezhdin became an unexpected phenomenon in Russian politics with his rare public criticism of the war in Ukraine, presenting a headache for the Kremlin as it orchestrates Putin’s fifth term in power ahead of the March 15-17 presidential election.
Hundreds of people in cities across Russia lined up to give their signatures in Nadezhdin’s support to allow him to be registered as a candidate by Russia’s Central Electoral Commission, an electoral procedure that the Kremlin often uses to weed out those who could seriously challenge Putin.
On Thursday, the commission ruled that thousands of the signatures were faulty, and the verified ones were not enough to register Nadezhdin.
Nadezhdin, 60, said on Telegram that he was disappointed in the decision and would appeal to the country’s supreme court.
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