GRIGORY YAVLINSKY IS COUNTED OUT

THE RUSSIAN

CENTRAL ELECTION COMMISSION

REJECTS GRIGORY YAVLINSKY'S

TWO-MILLION VOTER LIST

January 27, 2012

GRIGORY YAVLINSKY IN THE AFTERMATH

OF HIS FIRST RUN FOR PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA

In 1996, Boris Yeltsin won; Yavlinsky came in fourth. As I wrote (here) in the run-up to the end of Yeltsin's time in office:

Grigory Yavlinsky is trying to capitalize on an anti-corruption crusade as well, but from the side of the clean democrat. He has never met an offer from the Yeltsin administration that he thought worthy of bringing him from opposition to active participation in running the country. He did come in fourth in the last presidential election, and his Yabloko party is one of only four to break the five percent barrier and win a place in the Duma. The party is said to be increasing its organizational base in the country, and Yavlinsky himself is the top-ranking democrat/reformer in the polls, former Nizhny-Novgorod governor Boris Nemtsov having dropped precipitously after his service in the national government.

In 2000, Yavlinsky ran again. It was the first time Vladimir Putin stood for president (and won); Yavlinsky came in third.

At best, in this 2012 contest, Yavlinsky was polling in the low single digits. Why shut him out of the running? There seem to be two main plausible hypotheses: Putin needs every vote he can get to make it up to 50% in the first round; Yavlinsky's candidacy would entitle him to an army of observers to help keep the election results "free" and "fair."

Yavlinsky today said he would file suit against the Central Electoral Commission.

The election is March 4.

Some interesting additional reading can be found here and here and here.