Putin challenger submits 105,000 signatures backing his election campaign

Presidential hopeful Boris Nadezhdin should, in theory, be permitted on the ballot in March.

Boris Nadezhdin handed in enough signatures to meet the quota to be on the ballot for the presidential election | Vera Savina/AFP via Getty Images

The elephant in the room can no longer be ignored by the Kremlin, says 60-year-old Russian presidential hopeful Boris Nadezhdin, referring to himself.

On Wednesday morning, he and his team delivered two dozen boxes labeled “Nadezhdin 2024” to the Central Election Commission (CEC) in Moscow. Inside were 105,000 signatures — the required quota to ensure his place on the ballot for the Russian presidential election in March. That’s when he hopes to challenge Vladimir Putin, the incumbent and almost-certain winner.

“Here is my team, all completely pale, people who — to put it mildly — had little sleep lately. But we managed to do it,” Nadezhdin told journalists.  

In a post on his Telegram channel, the anti-war candidate said, “It will be very difficult for the CEC and the current authorities to say, ‘I didn’t even notice the elephant!’” Nadezhdin wrote.  

His long-shot presidential bid comes at a time when most Russian opposition figures are jailed or exiled. Nadezhdin’s anti-war stance has, however, nudged many Russians into backing his campaign as the Kremlin continues to wage full-scale war on Ukraine.

Long lines of people willing to support the Putin critic have formed at his campaign offices across Russia. Speaking to POLITICO, Nadezhdin attributed his success to a “number of miracles” — including his volunteers’ activities and support from influential Russian opposition figures in exile. 

The CEC will review the signatures submitted by hopeful candidates within 10 days. Alexander Kynev, a Moscow-based independent political analyst, told POLITICO he thought it was unlikely that Nadezhdin would be allowed to stand for election, as that’s too big a risk for the Kremlin. 

Presidential campaigns in Russia are known for the participation of so-called spoiler candidates whom Putin can easily knock down. This time, however, appears different as the spoilers drop out of the race one by one even before it starts.

Andrei Bogdanov, a veteran spin doctor, submitted his papers on Wednesday — but then immediately announced he wouldn’t run. Bogdanov, who previously ran for president in 2008 and gained 1.3 percent of the vote, cited an undisclosed foreign bank account as the reason for his withdrawal. Formally, this mistake bars him from the being on the ballot.

Sergei Baburin of the Russian conservative All-People’s Union withdrew on Tuesday soon after submitting his signatures, urging unity with Putin in a challenging time for Russia. He as well ran in the last campaign, gaining 1 percent of the vote. The conservative Democratic Party of Russia announced its candidate, Irina Sviridova, but said the party would support Putin too.

The Russian election is scheduled for March 15 to 17.

Sergey Goryashko is hosted at POLITICO under the EU-funded EU4FreeMedia residency program.