St. Petersburg's city election commission on July 24 refused to register the liberal Yabloko party's candidate list for the legislative assembly, citing a flaw in the power of attorney that it said made the party's financial report invalid. The decision was reported by Kommersant, Fontanka, and the party's press service.
At the commission meeting, deputy chair Oleg Zatsepa said the party had submitted a full set of documents, including a financial report, but that the authorized Yabloko representative lacked the right to sign it — a violation the commission deemed irreparable.
Party representative Pavel Shapchits argued that the power of attorney contained the word "including," which he said gave the lawyer the right to present the report. Commission chair Maxim Meiksin responded that powers not explicitly listed in the document are considered unconfirmed, citing clarifications from the Central Election Commission.
Yabloko called the decision "deliberately illegal and absolutely politically motivated," insisting all documents were submitted in full and any deficiencies had been corrected. Party leader Nikolai Rybakov said St. Petersburg authorities are seeking "a parliament that applauds all government initiatives." Legislative assembly deputy Dmitry Anisimov, who heads the citywide part of the party's list, said he would appeal the ruling.
The commission simultaneously registered candidate lists from A Just Russia, New People, and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. According to Meduza, A Just Russia had also been found to have incomplete documents earlier, but its candidates were nonetheless registered.
The rejection follows a series of other problems for St. Petersburg Yabloko. District election commissions said 11 of the party's 25 candidates had failed to submit some documents — party lawyers say the documents were submitted but then "disappeared." Ahead of the State Duma elections, about 40 Yabloko members lost the right to participate in the campaign on various grounds, more than 10 became defendants in criminal cases, 11 activists served administrative arrests, and over 40 searches were conducted at party members' homes and offices. Eleven party members are listed as "foreign agents." In June 2026, deputy party chair Maxim Kruglov was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of spreading "fakes" about the Russian army.