According to an investigation, the Kremlin has begun handpicking opposition candidates for President Vladimir Putin’s re-election next spring.
As reported on Monday by the independent Russian outlet Meduza, it published the investigation citing two anonymous sources close to Putin’s presidential administration.
The Kremlin has so far approved Communist Party pillar Gennady Zyuganov, 79, and Liberal Democratic Party leader Leonid Slutsky, 55, as “safe” candidates that “would ensure a high margin of victory for Putin”, in the midst of Russia’s costly war in Ukraine, according to the media
“There are no dark horses [el 17 de marzo de 2024, cuando están programadas las elecciones presidenciales de Rusia]”, one of the Kremlin sources allegedly told the outlet.
Putin’s advancing age poses a key challenge to the Kremlin’s efforts to win 80% votes and a 70% turnout, the outlet said, noting that polls show his age is one of the main things that Russians they don’t like him.
While some in the presidential administration refer to Putin, 70, as “grandfather,” the Kremlin now faces a choice between a 57-year-old challenger and a 39-year-old challenger from the newly formed New People.
“A young and active candidate can make voters think about the age of the president,” writes Meduza. “It will be an unfavorable contrast.”
It is worth mentioning that Sergei Mironov, leader of the A Just Russia – For Truth party, withdrew from the 2024 race, saying that his faction would support Putin’s re-election.
The Russian president, who has been in power for more than two decades, is expected to declare his candidacy for a fifth general presidential term. Changes to Russia’s constitution in 2020 allow him to remain president until 2036.
Interestingly, a recently published survey in the United States mentions that the majority of Americans believe that Joe Biden is too old for a new term, similar to what some refer to Putin.
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