Press Release, 9.09.2019

Three candidates from the Yabloko party were elected heads of municipals districts Dnovsky, Novorzhevsky and Pustoshkinsky in the Pskov Region in elections on 8 September: Sofya Pugacheva (Novorzhevsky district, 45.95% of the vote at a turnout of 52.53%), Svetlana Vasilkova (Pustoshkinsky district, 53.35% of the vote, the opponent from United Russia got 36.58%, at a turnout of 49.46%) and Mikhail Shaurkin (Dnovsky district, 63.75% of the vote, he won in all (!) the polling stations over the candidate from United Russia who got 23.07%, at a turnout of 44.88%).

Svetlana Vasilkova, deputy of the district Assembly of Deputies, civil engineer, Deputy Chair of the Pskov branch of Yabloko, Chair of the southwestern branch of the party, was elected head of the Pustoshkinsky district. Svetlana Vasilkova was supported by 53.4% of the voters, and her main rival, Ivan Shtylin, Chairman of the Pskov Region Sports Committee, got 36.6%.

Photo: Svetlana Vasilkova 

Sofya Pugacheva, electrical engineer in the aircraft industry and deputy of the District Assembly, Chair of the southeast branch of the Pskov Yabloko, was elected head of the Novorzhevsky District, 45.95% of voters voted for her, while Sergei Mezentsev, her main rival from the United Russia party, obtained 45.06% of the vote.

Photo: Sofya Pugacheva 

Mikhail Shaurkin, engineer, head of the department of operation and repair of customs infrastructure facilities of the Pskov Customs, became head of the Dnovsky district, 63.8% of voters cast their votes for him. Tatyana Pakhomova, Adviser to the Governor of the Pskov region, came second with 23% of the vote.

Photo: Mikhail Shaurkin

In addition, candidate from Yabloko Denis Timofeyev was elected deputy of the Dnovsky District Assembly of Deputies in a single-mendate constituency.

For the first time in our history, candidates who are Yabloko party members and deputies of district Assembly from the party – Sofia Pugacheva (Chair of the Yabloko South-East local branch) and Svetlana Vasilkova (Deputy Chair of the regional branch of Yabloko and Chair of the South-West local branch of the party) were elected heads of distrcits.

Everywhere where there our candidates ran in elections, voter participation was higher than usual and competitive elections were held there. Those voters who do not come to the polls, participate in voting when there are Yabloko candidates.

We had to win the courts in the law suits of the candidates from the Party of Grwoth so that Sofia Pugacheva and Mikhail Shaurkin could become heads of districts.

Arkady Vasiliev, candidate for the post of head of the Pushkinogorsky district, came the second (24.90%) at a turnout of 45.61%.

Now the Pskov Oblast (region), called by some people the “Pskov Yablost”, has five heads of districts elected from Yabloko. This is a whole faction, and we need to organise the teamwork of municipal leaders.

Lev Shlosberg ceased to be a “one man faction” last night. The team of the Pskov Yabloko won early elections for a deputy of the Pskov Regional Assembly and led Arthur Gaiduk to the success. Gaiduk is twice deputy of the Pskov City Duma from Yabloko (40.21%, 7.98% ahead of the candidate from United Russia, given the colossal, over 20%, early voting and low turnout of 16.56%). For the first time, there emerges a second deputy of the Pskov Regional Assembly from Yabloko.

Photo: Lev Shlosberg

Nikolai Kuzmin, candidate for deputy of the Pskov City Duma, came the second, receiving 24.51% of the vote (176 votes behind the winner) at a law turnout (18.05%).

Denis Timofeyev, became deputy of the Dnovsky District Assembly, only one (!) vote ahead of the United Russia candidate: 308 against 307, support for our candidate was 37.61% at a turnout of 42.66%.

Alexander Gulyaev, Yabloko candidate for deputy of the Dnovsky District Assembly, came second recieveing only eight (1) votes less than his opponent from the United Russia party (308 versus 316), his support was 30.68%, at a turnout of 46.06%.

Larisa Loginova came fifth in the four-member district out of 14 candidates for deputies of Karamyshevsky volost (22.48% at a turnout of 38.99%), the lag behind the fourth and the fifth place was 35 votes. Six more of our candidates in the same volost (district), most of whom took part in the elections for the first time, fought, but got more modest results. But they have everything ahead.

Commenting on the results of the Pskov Yabloko team, Lev Shlosberg, leader of the Pskov Yabloko and MP of the Pskov Regional Assembly, said, “Everyone worked at the limit of personal bestowal, did everything possible. I sincerely thank the whole team – we have lived together these months, weeks, days, hours and minutes. We have become stronger. The most important thing is heartfelt thanks to all our voters: it is you who won the election, and we work for you”.