A Brief Guide to the Russian Presidential Election

The political show is nearing. But we already know the winner

Vladimir Putin outlined his election program in an address to the Federal Assembly. Source of image: kremlin.ru

Presidential election in Russia will start on March 15 and will last an unprecedented three days. This year, the authorities have done everything possible to avoid unnecessary surprises. Polling stations will be open three times longer to give citizens more time to vote for the “right candidate.” According to presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, elections in Russia are not really democracy, but “costly bureaucracy,” leaving no doubt about Putin’s re-election. Vladimir Putin is certain to win, barring some unexpected development. That will give the longest serving Kremlin chief since Joseph Stalin another six-year term in power. The results will be announced shortly after March 17, and the winner will be inaugurated at the Grand Kremlin Palace in May.

The candidates

There will be four candidates in the Russian presidential election (just for comparison, the last presidential election in Ukraine in 2019 had 39 candidates). Vladimir Putin is running against Communist Nikolai Kharitonov, Leonid Slutsky of the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party, and Vladislav Davankov of the centrist New People party.
Boris Nadezhdin, the only anti-war candidate, was barred from running.