Russian Supreme Court removes Yabloko party from State Duma elections
This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.
The Russian Supreme Court on Monday removed the liberal Yabloko party from the September State Duma elections, accepting a lawsuit from the Rodina party that accused Yabloko of extremism for its ceasefire proposal on Ukraine. The court also heard claims of copyright violations and foreign financing, while Yabloko leaders denounced the decision as politically motivated and lacking evidence.
The Rodina Lawsuit
The Rodina party argued that Yabloko’s election program, which includes a call for a ceasefire agreement in Ukraine, amounts to extremism because it implies abandoning territories captured by Russian forces. Rodina also presented a ChatGPT-generated collage from an article by Yabloko founder Grigory Yavlinsky, claiming it violated OpenAI’s copyright, and asserted that the party’s logo was copied from a Soviet-era poster by El Lissitzky. Additional accusations included alleged violations in social media advertising.
Yabloko’s Response
Yabloko chairman Nikolai Rybakov dismissed the lawsuit as a “television talk show” lacking legal evidence, saying the party was being removed for proposing peace. He emphasized that the ceasefire proposal does not address borders or territorial disputes. Yavlinsky stated on Telegram that Yabloko had offered voters a chance to “vote for peace, freedom, and a life without fear,” calling it the most important message that no other Russian party could deliver. Rybakov requested the court to reject the Rodina lawsuit in full, vowing to continue defending the party’s political position.
Foreign Financing Claim
During the hearing, a Central Election Commission (CEC) representative revealed that Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s financial intelligence agency, had found evidence of foreign funding among individuals on Yabloko’s federal list. The document, marked “for official use,” was shown to the court, and Yabloko representatives were to be allowed to review it under a non-disclosure agreement. The CEC noted that while this claim could not be adjudicated in the current lawsuit, it might form the basis of a separate case.
What's Next
Yabloko plans to appeal the Supreme Court’s decision. It remains uncertain whether the appeal will be heard before the September elections, and international observers have yet to react to the removal of one of Russia’s oldest opposition parties.
4 sources
Russian Supreme Court removes Yabloko party from State Duma elections
