Russia's Justice Ministry has added the 'International Public Movement in Defense of Voters' Rights Golos' to its list of 'undesirable' organizations, according to a statement on the ministry's website. The Prosecutor General's Office granted the organization its status on June 30.
Stanislav Andreychuk, a former co-chair of the Golos movement, said the international Golos never existed. He noted that none of his former colleagues had created or planned to create such a structure, and there are no public references to it.
The original all-Russian public movement in defense of voters' rights Golos was previously designated a 'foreign agent' by the Justice Ministry. In July 2025, it announced it was ceasing operations: all regional branches were liquidated, projects were closed, and the website and 'Violations Map' stopped being updated. The organization remains on the register of Russian 'foreign agent' entities, although it ceased to exist a year ago.
Andreychuk said he personally notified the Justice Ministry, the Prosecutor General's Office, and the Foreign Ministry about the dissolution of all the movement's governing bodies and the departure of its members. Now the register of undesirable — that is, foreign — organizations includes an 'international movement' with the same name, with no country of location indicated. Andreychuk suggested that the state, ahead of elections, may have deliberately constructed a vaguely defined structure that could be used to target anyone whose position displeases authorities during or after voting. He described the creation of legal uncertainty as 'not a bug, but a feature' of Russia's political system.
Alongside the 'international' Golos, the list of 'undesirable' organizations also includes the Arctic Center at the University of Northern Iowa, the Swiss Academic Society for Eastern European Studies, the American Child Evangelism Fellowship, and the Karelian Educational Society. All of these organizations have a country of location indicated; the 'international' Golos does not.