Russia blocks remaining anti-war campaigner from poll
Russia's election commission on Thursday blocked pro-peace politician Boris Nadezhdin from running in next month's presidential election, the candidate said in a post on social media. President Vladimir Putin is set to secure another six-year term in the March 15-17 contest, in which all major opposition politicians have now been barred from running. Only three other candidates – all from ceremonial opposition parties that are backed by the Kremlin – now are registered to stand in next month's election. "The CEC (Central Election Commission) refused to register my candidacy for the post of president of the Russian Federation," Nadezhdin said, adding that he would appeal against the decision at Russia's supreme court. "I do not agree with the commission's decision... Participating in the 2024 presidential election is the most important political decision of my life. I will not pull back from my intentions. I will appeal against the CEC's decision at the supreme court," he said on Telegram. At a hearing in Moscow on Thursday, election officials said they found flaws with more than 9,000 of the 105,000 signatures Nadezhdin submitted from people backing his candidacy – above the permitted five-percent error rate. His chances of overturning the ruling at an appeal are non-existent, with the Kremlin exercising total control over elections in the country. Ahead of the decision, Nadezhdin's team said the alleged "errors" found by the commission included minor typos that happened when handwritten submissions were put into its computers. The 60-year-old's calls to stop Russia's military war in Ukraine brought out crowds of Russians across the country last month to support his bid to get on the ballot. Images of long queues of people waiting to sign his nomination papers punctured the Kremlin's narrative that Russian society is united behind Putin's campaign in Ukraine. At the hearing in central Moscow on Thursday, Nadezhdin said "tens of millions of people were going to vote for me." "I'm in second place, behind Putin," he said. (AFP)