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Russian anti-war politician Boris Nadezhdin announced on Sunday that he will withdraw from September’s legislative elections.
The 63-year-old Kremlin critic stated on X that authorities have effectively silenced him and pushed him out of politics, exhausting his ability to legally engage in opposition activities.
Кампания закрывается. Что дальше?
НАСТОЯЩИЙ МАТЕРИАЛ (ИНФОРМАЦИЯ) ПРОИЗВЕДЕН, РАСПРОСТРАНЕН И (ИЛИ) НАПРАВЛЕН ИНОСТРАННЫМ АГЕНТОМ НАДЕЖДИНЫМ БОРИСОМ БОРИСОВИЧЕМ, ЛИБО КАСАЕТСЯ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ ИНОСТРАННОГО АГЕНТА НАДЕЖДИНА БОРИСА БОРИСОВИЧА 18+
Мне затыкают рот, выдавливают из… pic.twitter.com/fXcO9fZ4nj
— Борис Надеждин (@Borbornad) July 19, 2026
Nadezhdin, one of the few remaining figures in Russia to publicly denounce President Vladimir Putin and the Ukraine offensive without being jailed, chose to step down to protect his campaign staff and supporters from state retaliation.
The government severely compromised his campaign last week by designating him a “foreign agent” before sentencing him on Friday for displaying “extremist symbols.”
The conviction stems from a 2023 video Nadezhdin posted that briefly featured the late dissident Alexei Navalny, whose organisations the state labelled as extremist before his 2024 death in prison.
Russian authorities have dramatically intensified their crackdown since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, leaving almost all political opponents imprisoned, dead, or exiled.
