Russian Presidential Contender Boris Nadezhdin Collects 100,000 Signatures

People line up to leave their signatures for him.

Russian presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin has collected the 100,000 signatures needed to register as a candidate, Radio Svoboda reports.

Nadezhdin, now 60, began his political career in the 1990s. In the noughties he was a State Duma deputy for the Union of Right Forces party.

Nadezhdin's nomination was previously called for by Russian opposition politicians such as Maxim Katz, Mikhail Khodorkovsky and supporters of Alexei Navalny. As a result, queues formed at signature collection points for Nadezhdin in Russian and foreign cities.

Nadezhdin announced that the collection of signatures would continue - at least up to 150,000. This is necessary to select the best quality signatures so that the Russian Central Election Commission will not be able to "pick on" them and call them "not genuine".

The CEC will announce the registration of candidates by 10 February at the latest. There are currently 11 presidential candidates who have been allowed to collect signatures in support of themselves or who have been nominated by parliamentary parties (such candidates do not need to collect signatures).

Voting in the Russian presidential elections will take place from 15 to 17 March 2024. Independent observers and experts describe elections in Russia as unfree and unfair. The authorities regularly interfere in the electoral process, obstructing access to the opposition, creating advantages for pro-government candidates, and in some cases outright rigging.