Russian President Vladimir Putin's potential competitor in the upcoming presidential election has been barred from running. Based on a report on Russian television, the ex-journalist made some mistakes in her candidacy registration.
Russia is still planning to continue its presidential election in 2024 despite the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Because of this, many political analysts and other experts believe that Putin will remain the ruler of the Kremlin.
But, despite Vladimir Putin being a feared leader, there's one Russian brave enough to challenge the president in the upcoming election. Sadly, her candidacy already ended before it even began.
Vladimir Putin's Potential Presidential Competitor Barred From Running
According to DW's latest report, Yekaterina Duntsova, a former Russian TV journalist, tried her luck to become the next president of Russia. Unfortunately, her application was rejected because of some "mistakes."
This information was announced after a Russian news channel posted a video showing a meeting of the Central Elections Committee (CEC). The footage showed CEC members voting unanimously to bar the ex-journalist from running.
Yekaterina Duntsova's campaign team also confirmed that their candidate's presidential application was rejected. They even showed screenshots of documents that the CEC highlighted.
CEC members argued that these documents lacked proper signatures, leading to Duntsova's presidential candidacy application being banned. If she wasn't barred, she was supposed to be the main challenger to Vladimir Putin.
Reports stated that Dunstova was planning to run a platform that would aim to end the invasion in Ukraine, as well as free political Russian prisoners.
Because of this, it is now unsure if Vladimir Putin will have another challenger who will try to take his throne as the Russian president.
Will Vladimir Putin Remain as Russian President?
On Dec. 8, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his presidential candidacy for the upcoming election, which is expected to happen in March 2024.
The Associated Press reported that the Russian ruler was all but certain to win. Based on Levada Center's recent poll, over 80% of Russia's population approve of Vladimir's performance.
However, experts claimed that Russian residents supporting Putin might just be a reflection of their fear/submission to the leader, especially since Putin is known for his crackdown against the opposition.
Many analysts also shared their opinions regarding Russia's politics, saying that the sad truth about this country is that no one can or wants to oppose the current ruler.
