Press Release, 29.07.2026

Photo: List leaders Inna Boluchevskaya, Olga Tuzhikova and Anna Pavlova

Today, 29 July, the Supreme Court of Karelia heard an administrative claim by the regional branch of the Rodina (Motherland) party seeking to overturn the ruling of the Electoral Commission of the Republic of Karelia of 17 July, which had registered Yabloko’s list of candidates for the election of deputies to the 8th convocation of the Legislative Assembly of Karelia.

In its claim, Rodina relied on the same circumstances that Territorial Electoral Commission No. 1 of Petrozavodsk had previously cited as grounds for refusing to register Yabloko’s list of candidates for the election to the Petrozavodsk City Council. In effect, the reason given is the same in both cases, namely, that Yabloko’s candidates allegedly failed to submit the documents required for registration to the electoral commission. Karelia Yabloko had not, however, received the notification of identified deficiencies required by law.

Yabloko’s list for the election to the Legislative Assembly of the Republic of Karelia is headed by paramedic and Deputy Chair of the Karelian parliament’s Committee on Healthcare and Social Policy Inna Boluchevskaya, lawyer and Petrozavodsk City Council deputy Olga Tuzhikova, and paralegal at the First Bar Association of the Republic of Karelia Anna Pavlova.

The party considers the ruling of the Supreme Court of Karelia to be politically motivated, Yabloko Chair Nikolai Rybakov stressed:

“This is a political hit job. And the authorities are perfectly aware of how shameful it is to remove from the election a party that enjoys the respect and trust of citizens. That’s why they entrusted this dirty business to those with no conscience whatsoever — Rodina, which disgraces that beautiful word. But Karelia Yabloko are experienced politicians, and together we will continue the fight. The Supreme Court of Karelia’s ruling will be appealed.”

It should be noted that the current head of the Yabloko faction in the Legislative Assembly, Honoured Teacher of Russia Emilia Slabunova, was barred to take part in the election. On 27 May, the Supreme Court of Karelia upheld the ruling of the Petrozavodsk City Court, which had found her guilty of “displaying extremist symbols” (Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The grounds for the administrative prosecution were a non-existent post on the politician’s Telegram channel, allegedly published in 2020. Once the ruling took legal effect, Emilia Slabunova was deprived of the right to stand for election for one year.

It should also be noted that on 24 July, the St. Petersburg Electoral Commission refused to register Yabloko’s list of candidates for the election to the Legislative Assembly. That decision has been appealed against.