Russia : Four candidates in the running for presidential election

On Friday, February 9th, the Central Election Commission of Russia unveiled the final list of candidates running in the presidential election. There are four candidates who have submitted their candidacy to be chosen.

Thus, the candidates who will participate in the presidential elections scheduled for next month are Leonid Slutsky of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party of Russia, Vladislav Davankov of the New People’s Party, and the current president, Vladimir Putin, who is running as an independent candidate as he did in 2004 and 2018, according to a sample ballot approved by the electoral organizing body in Russia and relayed by the media.

The CEC had excluded from the presidential race candidates Sergei Malinkovich of the Communists of Russia and Boris Nadejdin of the Civic Initiative, due to the invalidity of 5% or more of the signatures presented in their support.

Two other pre-candidates were also disqualified: Rada Russkikh and Anatoly Batachev (both independents) for presenting an insufficient number of valid support signatures. In 2018, eight candidates were in the running for the presidency, while in 2000 their number reached 11 people, a record. The current Russian president is seeking a fifth six-year term in these elections scheduled between March 15 and 17, 2024.

According to the schedule announced by the Election Commission, if no candidate receives more than half of the votes in March, a runoff will take place exactly three weeks later, on April 7, 2024. Nearly 112.309.947 voters, including 1.890.863 people abroad, will take part in this election, which will be held in person and remotely, according to the latest statistics from the CEC.