The Deputy PM, The Oligarch, And His Lover: New Navalny Exposé Highlights Tycoon's Ties To Kremlin Bigwig
By Mike Eckel
Oleg Deripaska is a billionaire Russian metals tycoon who throws lavish parties in Davos, Switzerland, has been barred from the United States, and has done business with President Donald Trump's now-indicted former campaign manager.
He's also well connected with the Kremlin; Russia's foreign minister once helped him in efforts to persuade U.S. government officials to grant him a visa.
Now, according to a new exposé published by anticorruption crusader Aleksei Navalny, there's more evidence of Deripaska's close government ties.
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Communist Base Reacts To Grudinin
There are several stories on how Communist candidate Pavel Grudinin's candidacy is playing with the party's base. In Republic.ru, political analyst Aleksandr Kynev argues that it could radicalize the party.
And in Nevavisimaya Gazeta, Aleksei Gorbachyov reports that it could lead to a schism.
Zhirinovsky Vs. Animals
Candidate Vladimir Zhirinovsky has a long record of making outrageous statements on topics from women to nuclear weapons. Some animal lover collected a sample of clips showing the perennial presidential candidate's attitude toward animals over the years.
In the first clip he brags that on the second day of his presidency, all stray dogs will be destroyed -- "In one day."
Other clips show a younger Zhirinovsky shooting a gun out of a moving train, something he calls "VIP hunting." In one of them, he shoots a chicken.
In the final clip, he describes shooting a bird, saying: "I feel that I am stronger than the bird. That I am a person."
Center Of Attention? Putin Stands Out On Official Ballot
By Tony Wesolowsky
Opposition politician Aleksei Navalny has dismissed Russia's presidential election in March as nothing more than the "reappointment" of Vladimir Putin.
Navalny has urged Russians to boycott the vote, arguing that it is rigged, and is now noting even the most inconspicuous signs of possible electioneering.
For example, the layout of the ballot papers.
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- By Andy Heil
On The Less-Is-More Ballot Commotion
TASS (via Rambler.ru) quotes Central Election Commission Chairwoman Pamfilova as saying of the conspicuous brevity that some say gives Putin's bio an edge on the ballot:
"Everything is clear by law, he just has a short post, and everyone [else] has a long one. So it happened, there is nothing more to write about."
Each of the candidates' bios appears to list merely date of birth, place of residence, occupation, and body (or bodies) that nominated the said candidate. In Putin's case, running as an independent, the ballot includes no party information -- sizable portions of the other candidates' sections.
TASS elsewhere quotes commission Deputy Chairman Nikolai Bulaev as saying that "all information about each candidate strictly corresponds to the federal law [and] no preferences for any reason are given to any of the candidates."
The Pros And Cons Of Local Referendums
In a report for Znak, Yekaterina Vinokurova looks at how the Kremlin is using local referendums on grassroots issues to boost turnout in the regions but is looking to bar them in Moscow, where the "wrong electorate" could turn out.
Sobchak: I'm A 'Compromise Figure'
Sobchak in response to the question of why Putin "allowed her to register for elections" says she could become a mediator in the transfer of power in six years' time. From VOA's Fatima Tlis via Current Time TV.
More On Grassroots Issues, Mobilization, And Kremlin Math
The authorities are doing their best to boost turnout by raising public interest in the elections and mobilising the electorate.
But political experts canvassed by Nezavisimaya Gazeta newspaper note that this strategy also poses risks for authorities in some regions, such as Altai Krai, which have comparatively high protest sentiment. They believe a higher turnout figure in places like Altai could result in fewer proportional votes for Putin: mobilizing the electorate could also coax those who do not support the Kremlin to the polling stations.
The great Danila Galperovich interviews Sobchak for VOA. Video and text (in Russian).