(USNewsBreak.com) – Earlier this month, Russian lawmakers set the next election date for March 17, 2024. President Vladimir Putin announced he was seeking reelection just days later, and many were wondering who would step up to run against him. One woman, Yekaterina Duntsova, a single mother with a quest for a more “humane” Russia, filed the paperwork to challenge Putin but has since met with a number of roadblocks. She’s not letting that stop her, however.
Duntsova, a journalist, lacks experience in politics, though she says that’s likely to be one of her greatest assets. She announced her intention to run in a post on Telegram in November, saying she was “afraid” but had “hope that Russia can be changed democratically.” Complicating matters even more, Duntsova is a vocal opponent of the war on Ukraine.
However, the road to candidacy may prove difficult for Duntsova. The country’s Central Election Commission rejected her nomination, saying she had spelling and other errors in the paperwork she submitted. She quickly appealed the decision, but Russia’s Supreme Court promptly rejected it just days later.
Duntsova has refused to let that stop her, however. After the Yabloko liberal party denied her when she asked them to nominate her, she forged on. Now, she’s hoping to create a new political party, one that she says would promote “peace, freedom and democracy,” according to AP News. The single mother of three is adamant that Russians must redeem “the right to live without fear, speak freely, and feel confident about the future.”
Other candidates have also filed the paperwork to run. The Communist Party nominated Nikolai Kharitonov, and the Civic Initiative Party backed Boris Nadezhdin. Where the Communist Party generally supports Putin, the Civic Initiative Party’s nominee, Nadezhdin, has spoken out against the war in Ukraine as well. Despite the challengers, political pundits expect Putin to win the March election.
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