Chapter 129: Imminent Plans

481      his first presidential election . . . about 53 percent  Katharine Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” Moscow Times, March 18, 2024, www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

481      exiled, imprisoned, or bent to Putin’s will  Alexey Kovalev, “In Putin’s Russia, the Hollowed-Out Media Mirrors the State,” The Guardian, March 24, 2017, www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/mar/24/putin-russia-media-state-government-control.

481      approve a law that required . . . two million signatures, doubling . . . exempting . . . The law, adopted by the Duma on December 24, 2022, went into effect on January 10, 2003. Parties “that had secured seats in the preceding Duma election were to be allowed to nominate presidential candidates without collecting the signatures that would otherwise have been necessary.” Russian Federation, “Federal Law on the Election of the President of the Russian Federation (2003) (English),” Legislationline, OSCE/ODHIR, accessed May 8, 2025, legislationline.org/taxonomy/term/12319; and Steven White, “Russia: The Authoritarian Adaptation of an Electoral System,” in The Politics of Electoral Systems, eds. Michael Gallagher and Paul Mitchell (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), doi.org/10.1093/0199257566.003.0015(chapter link), 317.

481      took out . . . Yushenkov  Steve Gutterman, “The List Is Long: Russians Who Have Died After Running Afoul of the Kremlin,” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, February 16, 2024, www.rferl.org/a/enemies-kremlin-deaths-prigozhin-list/32562583.html.

481      investigating the role . . . in the 1999 apartment bombings  Gutterman, “The List Is Long,” www.rferl.org/a/enemies-kremlin-deaths-prigozhin-list/32562583.html.

481      more than three hundred Russians  “The total death toll reached 307.” Denis Leven, “Moscow Attack: How Putin Could Use the Concert Hall Massacre to His Advantage,” Politico, March 25, 2024, www.politico.eu/article/vladimir-putin-moscow-attack-use-the-crocus-massacre-to-his-advantage.

481      blamed . . . on Chechens and used them as a pretext for . . .  Leven, “Moscow Attack,” Politico, www.politico.eu/article/vladimir-putin-moscow-attack-use-the-crocus-massacre-to-his-advantage/.

481      investigating the FSB’s role . . . turned up dead in 2003  Dasha Litvinova and Emma Burrows, “Nerve Agents, Poison and Window Falls: Kremlin Foes Have Been Attacked or Killed over the Years,” Associated Press (AP) News, February 16, 2024, apnews.com/article/russia-kremlin-enemy-navalny-prigozhin-litvinenko-skripal-958c2ed6b8d60ecc4f64092fc1f9ceb5.

481      forced to cast public ballots  Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), Russian Federation, Presidential Election, 11 March 2004, OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission Report (Warsaw, Poland: OSCE ODIHR, June 2, 2004), www.osce.org/files/f/documents/7/b/33100.pdf, 2, 21–22.

481      “problematic” counting and tabulations of ballots OSCE ODIHR, Russian Federation, Presidential Election, 11 March 2004, www.osce.org/files/f/documents/7/b/33100.pdf, 2, 23–25.

481      rigged reelection with 71.31 percent of the vote Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429. OSCE ODIHR stated in their report, based on their observations of the election, “the process overall did not adequately reflect principles necessary for a healthy democratic election. The election process failed to meet important commitments concerning treatment of candidates by the State-controlled media on a non-discriminatory basis, equal opportunities for all candidates and secrecy of the ballot.” OSCE ODIHR, Russian Federation, Presidential Election, 11 March 2004, www.osce.org/files/f/documents/7/b/33100.pdf, 1.

481      continued to be assassinated On October 7, 2006, Anna Politkovskaya, “one of Russia's most prominent journalists and a persistent chronicler of rights abuses in Chechnya,” was “shot dead in her apartment building, in an execution-style killing.” The following month, on November 23, “former Russian security agent” Aleksandr Litvinenko died “in London after being poisoned with radioactive polonium-210. Litvinenko had fled to Britain in 2000 after accusing the FSB of plotting to kill oligarch Boris Berezovsky. He later co-authored a book blaming the agency for the 1999 apartment-building bombings.” Gutterman, “The List Is Long," www.rferl.org/a/enemies-kremlin-deaths-prigozhin-list/32562583.html.

481      barred . . . for a third consecutive term  Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

481–482 handpicked . . . who won . . . rigged presidential election in 2008  Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     became the prime minister of Russia Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     dominated by . . . United Russia, amended the constitution to extend . . . six years “The amendments sailed easily through both houses of the national parliament, which is dominated by United Russia, a pro-Kremlin political party whose chairman is Putin.” Agence France-Presse (AFP), “Medvedev Approves Presidential Terms of Six Years,” France 24, December 30, 2008, updated December 31, 2008, www.france24.com/en/20081230-medvedev-approves-presidential-terms-six-years-. See also Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     as tightly rigged . . . as the presidential elections OSCE ODIHR observers reported that the 2011 State Duma election was “slanted in favour of the ruling party" and lacked “the necessary conditions for fair electoral competition.” OSCE ODIHR, Russian Federation, Elections to the State Duma, 4 December 2o11, OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission Final Report (Warsaw, Poland: OSCE ODIHR, January 12, 2012) www.osce.org/files/f/documents/f/5/86959.pdf, 1. “Demonstrations in the immediate aftermath of the election saw more than 1,000 arrests, mostly in Moscow.” “Russian Election: Biggest Protests Since Fall of USSR,” BBC News, December 10, 2011, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-16122524.

482     huge demonstrations . . . “For Fair Elections”  Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     won . . . with nearly 64 percent of the vote  Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     reports of ballot stuffing and carousel voting  OSCE ODIHR, Russian Federation, Presidential Election, 4 March 2012, OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission Final Report (Warsaw, Poland: OSCE ODIHR, May 11, 2012),www.osce.org/files/f/documents/2/c/90461.pdf, 19, 18; and Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     paying busloads of voters . . . to vote multiple times for Putin  Thomas Grove, “Russia’s Election ‘Carousel’–a Tale of Alleged Fraud,” Reuters, March 5, 2012, www.reuters.com/article/world/russias-election-carousel-a-tale-of-alleged-fraud-idUSDEE824084/; and Maria Vassilieva, “Russian Elections: Hunting the ‘Carousel’ Voters,” BBC News, March 6, 2012, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17256116.

482     no fewer than 20,000 people  Ellen Barry and Michael Schwirtz, “Arrests and Violence at Overflowing Rally in Moscow,” New York Times, May 6, 2012, www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/world/europe/at-moscow-rally-arrests-and-violence.html; and Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     with nightsticks, arrests, and jail sentences “Police in full riot gear charged into the crowd, dragging out people they suspected of pelting them with bottles and chunks of asphalt, and beating some brutally with nightsticks . . . Among more than 400 protesters in custody on [the night of the protest] were most of the event’s organizers.” Barry and Schwirtz, “Arrests and Violence at Overflowing Rally in Moscow,” www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/world/europe/at-moscow-rally-arrests-and-violence.html.

482     got slapped with four years in prison  “Russian Protesters Sentenced,”   Deutsche Welle (DW), February 24, 2014, www.dw.com/en/russian-court-hands-prison-sentences-to-seven-anti-putin-protesters/a-17453175; and Dasha Litvinova, “How Putin’s Crackdown on Dissent Became the Hallmark of the Russian Leader’s 24 Years in Power,” AP News, March 6, 2024, apnews.com/article/russia-putin-crackdown-opposition-dissent-prison-532705369591610a94e9e86340233380.

482     fifteen days in prison, becoming . . .Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     barred seventeen candidates from running, including Navalny Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429.

482     won . . . with nearly 77 percent of the vote  Khamhaengwong, “Timeline: Russia’s Presidential Elections Since Independence,” www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/03/18/timeline-russias-presidential-elections-since-independence-a84429; and “Russia Election: Vladimir Putin Wins by Big Margin,” BBC News, March 19, 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-43452449.

482     used the pretext . . . to outright ban demonstrations and protests  Litvinova, “How Putin’s Crackdown on Dissent Became the Hallmark of the Russian Leader’s 24 Years in Power,” apnews.com/article/russia-putin-crackdown-opposition-dissent-prison-532705369591610a94e9e86340233380.

482     poisoned . . . likely by FSB operatives  Pjotr Sauer, “Twenty Years of Ruthlessness: How Russia Has Silenced Putin’s Opponents,” The Guardian, August 27, 2023, www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/27/history-killing-how-russia-has-silenced-putins-opponents.

482     treated him and he recovered  Mstyslav Chernov and Jim Heintz, “Kremlin Critic Navalny Detained After Landing in Moscow,” AP News, January 17, 2021, apnews.com/article/alexei-navalny-putin-russia-detained-74a87b440567673e55ea527980e472e1.

482     detained him, charging him with a parole violation Chernov and Heintz, “Kremlin Critic Navalny Detained After Landing in Moscow,” apnews.com/article/alexei-navalny-putin-russia-detained-74a87b440567673e55ea527980e472e1.

482     prompted mass demonstrations across Russia “Chanting slogans against President Vladimir Putin, tens of thousands took to the streets [on January 31] across Russia to demand the release of” Navalny. Jim Heintz and Vladimir Isachenkov, “Over 5,100 Arrested at Pro-Navalny Protests Across Russia,” AP News, January 31, 2021, apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-moscow-coronavirus-pandemic-arrests-russia-085b16035e9c89ffb9919e4d94a2309c.

483     quelled months later The final major protests occurred on April 21, 2021. See Svetlana Erpyleva and Oleg Zhuravlev, "What's new about Russia's new protests?" openDemocracy, June 3, 2021, www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/whats-new-in-russia-protests-2021-navalny; and OVD-Info, "Suppression of the April 21 protests," June 7, 2021, ovd.info/en/suppression-april-21-protests#13.

483     outlawed “discrediting” . . . or circulating “false information” . . .“Federal Law of 04.03.2022 No. 32-FZ ‘On Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Articles 31 and 151 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation,’” March 4, 2022, Official Internet Portal of Legal Information of the Russian Federation, actual.pravo.gov.ru/content/content.html#pnum=0001202203040007.

483     between ten and fifteen years in prison “Federal Law of 04.03.2022 No. 32-FZ ‘On Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Articles 31 and 151 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation,’” actual.pravo.gov.ru/content/content.html#pnum=0001202203040007.

483     used the law to ban dozens . . .Yuras Karmanau and Dasha Litvinova, “A Timeline of Restrictive Laws That Authorities Have Used to Crack Down on Dissent in Putin’s Russia,” AP News, March 6, 2024, apnews.com/article/russia-election-repressive-laws-dissent-5927d8932736636a9339fdcbaebd2331.

483     arrested almost 20,000 . . . in the first two years  According to Russian human rights group OVD-Info, 19,850 people were arrested and detained for their “anti-war stance” between February 24, 2022, and January 22, 2024. OVD-Info, “Persecution of the Anti-War Movement Report: Two Years of Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine, February 2024,” February 28, 2024, ovd.info/en/persecution-anti-war-mo.

483     sentenced an artist in Saint Petersburg to seven years in jail for . . .Litvinova, “How Putin’s Crackdown on Dissent Became the Hallmark of the Russian Leader’s 24 Years in Power,” apnews.com/article/russia-putin-crackdown-opposition-dissent-prison-532705369591610a94e9e86340233380; and Andrew Osborn, “Russian Artist Who Staged Anti-War Protest in Supermarket Jailed for Seven Years,” Reuters, November 16, 2023, www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-artist-who-used-supermarket-price-tags-criticise-ukraine-war-faces-2023-11-16/.

483     sentenced to five and a half years in prison for . . .  Litvinova, “How Putin’s Crackdown on Dissent Became the Hallmark of the Russian Leader’s 24 Years in Power,” apnews.com/article/russia-putin-crackdown-opposition-dissent-prison-532705369591610a94e9e86340233380.

483     sentenced Navalny, who opposed Putin’s Ukraine invasion, to nineteen years  Litvinova, “How Putin’s Crackdown on Dissent Became the Hallmark of the Russian Leader’s 24 Years in Power,” apnews.com/article/russia-putin-crackdown-opposition-dissent-prison-532705369591610a94e9e86340233380.

483     died in prison . . .  There is evidence to suggest that Navalny was poisoned. Csongor Körömi, “Navalny May Have Been Killed by Poisoning, Documents Suggest: Report,” Politico, September 30, 2024, www.politico.eu/article/alexei-navalny-killed-possible-poison-russia-vladimir-putin/. For a news report from the day of Navalny’s death, see Paul Kirby, “Putin Critic Alexei Navalny Dies in Arctic Circle Jail, Says Russia,” BBC News, February 16, 2024, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68315943.

483     almost certainly assassinated  Körömi, “Navalny May Have Been Killed by Poisoning, Documents Suggest: Report,” Politico, September 30, 2024, www.politico.eu/article/alexei-navalny-killed-possible-poison-russia-vladimir-putin/; and Dasha Litvinova, “Western Officials and Kremlin Critics Blame Putin and His Government for Navalny’s Death in Prison,” AP News, February 16, 2024, apnews.com/article/russia-navalny-death-global-reactions-putin-19e7fd6318763627f6917a92678cd190.

483     the “first lady” of the opposition, vowed to carry on her husband’s work  Francesca Ebel, “What to Know About Yulia Navalnaya as She Vows to Take on Vladimir Putin,” Washington Post, February 20, 2024, www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/02/20/yulia-navalnaya-alexei-navalny-wife/. Navalnaya’s “First Lady” nickname dates to 2013. Alexey Strelnikov, “Can Yulia Navalnaya Unite the Russian Opposition?” DW, June 5, 2024, www.dw.com/en/can-yulia-navalnaya-unite-the-russian-opposition/a-68342338.

483     Outside of Russia Yulia Navalnaya “left Russia after her husband’s arrest in 2021” and has been “reportedly living in Germany.” Ebel, “What to Know About Yulia Navalnaya as She Vows to Take on Vladimir Putin,” www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/02/20/yulia-navalnaya-alexei-navalny-wife.