– He is one of the so-called gray conformists, loyal liberals that the Russian authorities chose to live with. That’s why they didn’t expect to have him as a challenger, says Inna Sangadzhieva, senior adviser at the Norwegian Helsinki Committee.
The Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin is the only challenger to Vladimir Putin in this year’s presidential election who does not support the war. There is great excitement about whether he will be allowed to run at all.
There has been a massive purge of political figures who openly criticize both Putin and the war in Ukraine. Alexei Navalny, one of the most famous, has been sentenced to several decades in prison.
Nadezhdin is one of the few left.
SURPRISED: Senior adviser Inna Sangadzhieva of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee was surprised when she saw the Russians’ response to Boris Nadezhdin’s presidential campaign. Photo: The Norwegian Helsinki Committee Show more
He has, as Sangadzhieva points out, been given the opportunity to criticize the war in Ukraine until now. But when he declared his presidential candidacy, the response came as a surprise both to himself and to the Russian authorities who have so far tolerated him, according to Sangadzhieva.
– I think they regret it, she says.
Warns of action against “unfriendly countries”
Wants an end to the war
Nadezhdin’s election promise, should he come to power, is to immediately contact Zelenskyj to propose a ceasefire. He has as part of his campaign met wives of Russian soldiers in Ukraine, who demand their husbands home.
He previously worked in Vladimir Putin’s apparatus for a number of years, and claims himself that he still drinks tea with high-ranking Russian officials, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In an interview with it independent Russian online newspaper Vjorstka says Nadezjdin that his support among the people is so great that he does not think the authorities dare to stop him from running.
QUICK TURNOVER: Boris Nadezhdin has implemented a large election campaign apparatus in a very short time. The photo was taken at an election campaign office in Moscow. Inna Sangadzhieva believes that the authorities have been put to bed. Photo: Jevgenija Novozhenina Show more
In a short time, he has opened election campaign offices in a large number of Russian cities, some of them with dozens of employees.
– Does it surprise you that he has been given the opportunity to build such a large election campaign apparatus without being stopped by the authorities?
– I think they slept in class. Nadezhdin started the mobilization of his team just before New Year’s Eve. Most people in the mainstream political environment were on holiday. He has a large network from his time as a politician, and has had the opportunity to build the team quickly, says Sangadzhieva.
Russian President Vladimir Putin took the opportunity to mock Ukraine during a meeting in Moscow on January 16. Video: AP. Reporter: Magnus Paus/Dagbladet TV Show more
Popular uprising
To be approved by Russia’s Electoral Commission, he must have over 100,000 signatures from at least 40 regions of Russia.
– The fact that I have already received signatures from thousands of people cannot be hidden or ignored, he adds Vjorstka.
He thinks the commission will be in trouble if they try to stop him. Since his campaign has now grown large, he does not think it will be possible to stop it without the whole country finding out about it.
His supporters believe, according to the news agency Reuters, that he has already reached 100,000 after great support from the big cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg. However, he needs more signatures from other parts of Russia.
Pictures have emerged from a number of Russian cities showing queues outside the registration offices of Nadezhdin’s campaign.
DEFYING THE COLD: According to his campaign, over 100,000 have braved the cold and lined up to sign Nadezhdin’s presidential candidacy. Photo: Jevgenija Novozjenina / Reuters Show more
– Will be stopped
Sangadzhieva emphasizes that she does not think he has any chance of winning the election. She also doesn’t think he will be allowed to pose at all.
But that’s not the most important thing either, she believes. The queues, however, are. She compares them to what was seen in Belarus in 2020, when people stood in line for Svjatlana Tsikhanowskaja.
This was followed by massive demonstrations against Lukashenko’s regime, which were brutally cracked down on.
– It is an aha experience. Temperatures are down to minus 40 degrees, and yet people choose to stand in line to sign, he says.
– That’s what people see. When Putin collected signatures for his campaign, there were no queues. They had to remove the registration offices, because it was embarrassing. People see the queues outside the registration offices of Nadezhdin, and they see the contrast, she says.
FOR PUTIN: The photo shows a similar signature campaign for Vladimir Putin’s candidacy, taken at a shopping center in Moscow on 16 January this year. According to Sangadzhieva, the Putin campaign has had to shut them down. Photo: Aleksandr Zemlianichenko / AP Show more
– It is important, because it creates turbulence during the period when the presidential election is held. People find each other and see that they are not alone. It counters Putin’s propaganda that he and the war have a majority in the population.
The Putin campaign claims to have received two million signatures. However, these come largely from public employees, such as teachers and doctors, according to Sangadzhieva.
– They are obliged to sign, and you don’t see them in the streets, she says.
The other two aspects are that he dares to criticize Putin directly, and the simplicity of his message: To end the war, and release political prisoners.
The rest of the Russian opposition has urged their followers to vote for him.
New photos after the “disappearance”
Receives criticism
Opposite Vjorstka Nadezhdin paints a picture of her campaign as a grassroots movement.
– The presidential campaign is unique in the history of Russia, because it is financed exclusively by donations from a huge number of people. More than 10,000 have already donated, he tells the newspaper.
His critics believe the Kremlin allows his criticism of the war to give the impression of democracy, and that they accept criticism of the war.
QUEUES: Long queues have formed outside Nadezhdin’s signature booths in a number of Russian cities. The photo was taken in Moscow, 23 January, outside a signing room. Photo: Jevgenija Novozjenina / Reuters Show more
Similar claims also came when Putin, during his annual massive press conference with questions from the audience, allowed questions critical of the war to appear on screens and be shown on television.
Throughout the war, Nadezhdin has been critical of both Putin and the war in Ukraine on state news channels.
– The authorities wanted to use him to prove that he was one of them, he too, and that they still allowed liberal votes. But now his message is about an opportunity to topple Putin. His messages have content, says Sangadzhieva.
– What does he do next if he is stopped?
– If he is not arrested, poisoned or killed, he can try to go to court and contest it. He can use the symbolic capital he has gained to take the movement further, she says.
The Putin apparatus made a statement on Wednesday about the challenger. To the press, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that they do not fear his candidacy.
– We do not see him as a rival at all. All citizens have the right to run for president, if they meet certain requirements, Peskov said, according to Reuters.
2024-01-25 09:51:09
#Putin #challenged #slept #class
