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18.09.2026
On 18 September, the Moskovsky District Court of Cheboksary fined Vladislav Arkadyev, head of the Chuvash branch of Yabloko, 1,000 roubles (about US$10) under the article on displaying prohibited symbols—the reason was a link to a film by Navalny’s team, “He Is Not Dimon to You.” Previously, the Supreme Court of Chuvashia removed Arkadyev and Viktor Stenshin from the State Duma elections following lawsuits by rivals over copyright to a font and posts about candidates in the foreign agent channel Angry Chuvashia.
The 2nd Western District Military Court has sentenced 62-year-old Alexey Orleansky, a resident of Yaroslavl Region (a region northeast of Moscow), to eight years in prison and a fine of 300,000 rubles (approx. US$3,300) on charges of financing terrorism (Part 1.1, Article 205.1 of the Criminal Code) over donations to ‘Artpodgotovka.’ Orleansky will spend the first two years in prison, with the remainder of the sentence to be served in a high-security penal colony.
Two observers for Yabloko candidate Sergei Mitrokhin from Moscow, as well as several members of election commissions representing Yabloko in St Petersburg, have received summonses from the military recruitment office. According to the party, on 14 September eight territorial election commissions in Moscow refused to admit their observers, and on 17 September Mitrokhin filed a complaint with the Central Election Commission.
Ahmed Abazov, a candidate for the State Duma from Yabloko in Karachay-Cherkessia, announced that he was withdrawing his candidacy due to pressure and threats which, he said, came from representatives of United Russia. Abazov sent information about the threats to the Investigative Committee and the Prosecutor General’s Office, but his name remained on the ballot paper as the election commission did not receive an official statement.
Ivan Rostovtsev, editor-in-chief of the publication Chesnok, was notified of a new administrative charge by telegram, which was sent on 14 September but he was only able to receive it on 18 September. He was not notified in any other way, such as by phone.
In Volgograd, on the first day of voting, police are issuing activists and a journalist with official warnings against holding demonstrations during the election. According to Vladimir Telpuk, Ilya Kravchenko, and Vyacheslav Lemkus, they or their relatives have been handed such documents.
Observer Roman Malozemov reported that police officers expelled him from polling station No. 2002 in Novosibirsk, after a statement was submitted to revoke his credentials—a statement which, he said, he did not sign. Malozemov has filed a lawsuit with the Central District Court of Novosibirsk, demanding that his rights as an observer be reinstated.
Judge Marochkin expelled lawyer Maria Bonzler from the courtroom, after which she began to feel unwell in an overcrowded police van without ventilation. According to Bonzler, she lost consciousness but did not receive any medical assistance.
In Izhevsk, a major city in the Urals, employees of the Housing and Utilities Administration were ordered to submit applications to participate in remote electronic voting, and were required to ensure 100% participation, according to Udmurtia Against Corruption. Management also demanded that workers involve their relatives in the voting and threatened them with additional work if the requirements were not met.
In the past two weeks, the number of opposition candidates barred from running in the State Duma and regional parliamentary elections has risen from 36 to 64. Most were disqualified due to accusations of displaying banned symbols, copyright violations, issues with documents, or holding foreign shares; 42 of them were nominated by the Yabloko party.
The Russian Ministry of Justice has added the 'Anarchist-35' project, Mikhail Shevelev, Erzhan Turgumbay, Pavel Ivanov, and Andrei Zvyagintsev to the register of 'foreign agents'. The relevant decision was published on 18 September.
Andrey Zvyagintsev has been added to the Justice Ministry’s register for “collaboration with foreign agents” and spreading “false information” about Russian politics. The ministry stated that the film director had been involved in creating materials for foreign agents and undesirable organisations.
A criminal case has been opened against blogger Anatoly Deev from Verkhnyaya Pyshma, a town in the Urals, for burning a Russian flag marked with the Latin letters Z, V, and a swastika. He is also charged with two counts of “rehabilitation of Nazism” (Article 329 and Parts 3 and 4 of Article 354.1 of the Criminal Code). The first hearing in Deev’s case is scheduled for 28 September and will be held behind closed doors.
The Krasnogvardeysky District Court of St Petersburg sentenced Oleg Petrov to 10 days of administrative detention under Part 1 of Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences for posts on VKontakte about the Red Control project and for links to banned resources. According to Petrov, he forgot to delete these materials.
At the polling station, attempts are being made to remove the observer from the Yabloko party, Alexei Ogloblin, and the police have been called. According to the law, an observer can only be removed by a court or by the candidate who appointed them.
The Sovietsky and Central Courts in Voronezh have rejected lawsuits filed by Communist Party (KPRF) candidates Denis Kolomentsev and Alexander Shabunin regarding the refusal to register their election observers. According to the courts, the territorial electoral commissions informed the candidates in due time about shortcomings in the submitted lists.
In the Moscow region, the Dolgoprudny Territorial Election Commission notified Yabloko party candidate Maksim Vladimirov that 68 people from his list allegedly cannot serve as observers due to the lack of active voting rights. The same argument is being used to obstruct observers’ work in Mytishchi, a city near Moscow. At a polling station in Shchyolkovo, commission members tried to remove a colleague after they complained about being denied access to voter lists; observers say that the removal documents had been prepared in advance.
On the first day of voting, at least 984 observers from the Communist Party (CPRF) and 350 from Yabloko were not allowed to work at polling stations, journalists from “7×7” calculated based on data from the parties and media. According to reports from various regions, commissions explained the refusals by citing errors in documents, lack of local registration, and other formal reasons.
Lithuanian border guards detained a Russian national aged between 60 and 68, who swam across the Neman River from the Kaliningrad region on 17 September and applied for asylum, stating they were being persecuted due to their activity on social media. The Lithuanian authorities refused them entry and returned them to Russia the same day.
The Shali City Court in Chechnya has denied early release on parole to Zarema Musaeva. According to her lawyer, Alexander Savin, the prosecutor’s office and the administration of the penal colony opposed the defence’s request.