ALDE Member Party Yabloko to stand in Russian municipal elections

Our sister liberal party and fellow ALDE Party member, Yabloko, has registered 164 candidates for the Russian municipal elections on 10 September, as well as two candidates for the by-elections of State Duma deputies. In total, Yabloko will stand in 13 Russian regions, including in the regions of Moscow, Pskov and Novgorod. In several regions, candidates collected a required number of signatures to be able to proceed with their nomination in spite of the party’s stance on Russia’s so-called “special operation” in Ukraine. 

Unsurprisingly, Yabloko faces considerable obstacles from the authorities. In the Pskov region, a total of 13 single-mandate candidates will stand for Yabloko after Russian courts removed seven lists of Yabloko candidates from the municipal elections. In the north-west region of Novgorod, three Yabloko candidates to the State Duma may be removed from the elections after police issued protocols of administrative violations against them. 

In Yekaterinburg, Yabloko launched a petition to declare 2024 the Year of Peace and Freedom. The party aims to discuss with Russian citizens the need for a ceasefire and the start of peace negotiations regarding the situation in Ukraine. 

Commenting ahead of the elections, Yabloko Chair Nikolai Rybakov said: “The struggle for fair elections is a struggle for democracy, peace, freedom and prosperity for our country and the well-being of the people in Russia.” 

Source: ALDE Party https://www.aldeparty.eu/yabloko_to_stand_in_russian_municipal_elections