Sixteen candidates have filed to run for Russia's presidency next year, officials said Wednesday, in an election that is expected to easily hand Vladimir Putin a fifth term.
Moscow has for years sidelined opposition figures from elections and political life, a clampdown that accelerated after the Kremlin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in 2022.
"So far, we have received applications from 16 candidates for the presidential election," the chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Ella Pamfilova was cited as saying by the state-run RIA Novosti news agency.
Putin confirmed this month during a meeting with military veterans that he would join the election scheduled to be held next year over three days beginning March 15.
The CEC said it would also hold the ballot in four Ukrainian regions partially occupied by Russian forces and in the Crimean peninsula, annexed from Kyiv in 2014.
The Kremlin-friendly Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) of Russia this week nominated a former negotiator for the Ukraine conflict, Leonid Slutsky, as a candidate.
He said his candidacy would not "take away votes" from Putin.
Candidates must file applications to run in the March vote by Dec. 27, election rules state, after which they will be required to gather thousands of signatures from supporters to secure a place on the ballot.
Igor Girkin, a hardline nationalist turned Kremlin critic who is in detention awaiting trial on extremism charges, said he wanted to challenge Putin.
Jailed opposition figure Alexei Navalny was barred from running in elections in 2018 due to an old fraud charge that his allies said was politically motivated.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
