Press Release, 27.12.2017

Renowned Russian artist and Honorary Citizen of St. Petersburg Oleg Basilashvili will support Grigory Yavlinsky in the presidential elections in Russia. This was reported by Boris Vishnevsky, head of the Yabloko faction in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg.

“Today I have visited my voter – People’s Artist of the USSR and Honorary Citizen of St. Petersburg Oleg Valerianovich Basilashvili. We talked about many things – starting with an outrageous interview of the FSB [Russian Federal Security Service] Director who had justified Stalin’s reprisals and ending with the presidential elections. Oleg Basilashvili will support Yabloko’s candidate Grigory Yavlinsky. It is a great honor for us and a great responsibility,” Boris Vishnevsky said.

Oleg Basilashvili supported Yabloko in the 2016 Duma elections.

Nomination of Grigory Yavlinsky was also supported by Yevgeny Gontmakher, Chief Researcher at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Igor Nikolayev, Director of the FBK Institute for Strategic Analysis and Professor of the Higher School of Economics, politicians Vladimir Ryzhkov and Dmitry Gudkov and others.

Yabloko began collecting signatures necessary to register party candidate Grigory Yavlinsky in the presidential race. By 31 January, Yavlinsky must transfer to the Central Electoral Commission at least 105,000 voters’ signatures in favour of his nomination, whereas only 2,500 signatures per region is allowed. Activists of Yabloko collect signatures in 79 regions of Russia.