ALDE, 27.12.2017

Yabloko have chosen Grigory Yavlinsky as its candidate in the forthcoming Presidential election in Russia and have begun collecting signatures in support of his nomination.

On 21 December, Yabloko congress nominated its candidate for the presidential elections, with Yavlinsky, the founder of the party, Chairman of Yabloko’s Federal Political Committee, Doctor of Economics and Professor of the Higher School of Economics (Moscow), being chosen by members.

Yavlinsky has twice participated in Russia’s presidential elections: in 1996, he represented a democratic alternative to the policies of the Boris Yeltsin’s Administration, and in 2000 was the only democratic politician running against Vladimir Putin. Then Yavlinsky came third and received 18.6 per cent in Moscow at a turnout of 67.1 per cent. In 2012, he was not allowed to participate in the presidential elections for political reasons.

As a candidate from a non-parliamentary party, Yavlinsky needs to collect at least 100,000 voter signatures to participate in the presidential election in 2018, with signatures collected from across the country with no more than more than 2,500 signatures for a candidate per region.

On 5 January, the party’s Deputy Chair Nikolai Rybakov said more than a third of the required signatures had been collected despite the New Year holidays and the party was on course to collect at least 150,000 signatures.

Speaking at the Congress, party chair Emilia Slabunova said: “We need new goals, and only a new leader can bring along the new goals. We have such a leader is, it is Grigory Yavlinsky. Yavlinsky knows everything the president needs to know. And the president needs to know the way to the future, rather than a path to the past. He should know how to properly build a team, rather than retinue. He should know how to make friends, not enemies, how to build a cooperation, not dependence. How to protect citizens, and not the purses of his friends.”

“Yavlinsky is a true patriot,” she continued. “He could have been a fine, brilliant professor at Harvard or Cambridge, but his soul hurts for Russia. We call on all Russian citizens to support the leader with whom Russia will have a future – a rich, prosperous and peaceful future. The future of Russia is Yavlinsky!”

You can read more about Yabloko’s Congress on 21 December on Yabloko’s website.
Source https://www.aldeparty.eu/news/grigory-yavlinsky-be-yabloko-candidate-russian-presidential-election