Russia's Central Election Commission (CEC) unanimously registered the Yabloko party's candidate list for the State Duma elections, the party's press service said. Yabloko is the only Russian party with an anti-war position, according to OVD-Info.
The federal list includes 269 candidates, with an additional 135 Yabloko candidates running in single-mandate districts. The CEC noted the registration decision was unanimous.
From the initially submitted list of 271 candidates, the commission excluded two people. Yegor Karpenkov from St. Petersburg submitted a statement to the Interior Ministry about his residence in Italy after the deadline, the CEC said. Candidate Oleg Shabalin was found to hold Ukrainian citizenship.
Party chairman Nikolai Rybakov said that Russian citizens for the first time in five years have a real opportunity to vote for peace and freedom, and to legally and safely advocate for a ceasefire agreement.
Earlier, the CEC registered seven parties for the Duma elections: the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF), New People, United Russia, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), A Just Russia, the Party of Pensioners, and Communists of Russia. The registration of lists for Rodina, the Party of Direct Democracy, and the Greens is still pending.
Before the federal elections, Yabloko was denied registration for elections to the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly and the Petrozavodsk City Council. The party said it would appeal those decisions. Additionally, the Rodina party appealed to the Supreme Court of Karelia to cancel Yabloko's registration for elections to the republic's legislative assembly.
Earlier, Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that at least 14 Yabloko members were barred from participating in upcoming federal and regional elections due to accusations of displaying extremist symbols. A total of 22 politicians received such bans. Several other politicians were also disqualified due to criminal cases or foreign agent status.