Support The Moscow Times!

Russia’s Far-Right LDPR Nominates Leader for 2024 Presidential Race

LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky. LDPR / Telegram

Members of the far-right Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) on Tuesday nominated their leader and State Duma deputy Leonid Slutsky as the party's candidate for Russia's 2024 presidential race. 

A total of 106 out of the 111 delegates present at the party's congress in Moscow voted to nominate Slutsky — who stood unopposed during Tuesday's vote — as LDPR's presidential candidate. 

"Our key platform is that all regions should enjoy an equal standard of living and social guarantees," the State Duma deputy said after accepting the nomination.

But Slutsky later told reporters he "won't take away votes from the President of Russia," predicting that Vladimir Putin would "win by a huge margin" in next year's election. 

"I won't call to vote against Putin. A vote for Slutsky and LDPR is absolutely not a vote against Putin," the lawmaker said. 

The state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported that Slutsky would formally file his candidacy with the elections commission later this month.

LDPR has struggled to maintain relevance since the death of its longtime leader Vladimir Zhirnovsky — a six-time presidential candidate — at the age of 75 in April 2022.

Slutsky, 54, was first elected to Russia’s lower-house State Duma in 2000. 

Last year, was appointed as one of Russia’s negotiators in failed peace talks with Kyiv after Moscow invaded Ukraine. 

Several journalists and a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman in 2018 accused Slutsky of sexual harassment. The State Duma deputy denied the accusations.

Earlier this month, the investigative news outlet The Insider reported that Slutsky had passed information about foreign academic and religious figures who were invited to Russia at his behest to the Russian intelligence services.

The pro-Kremlin ruling party United Russia over the weekend endorsed President Vladimir Putin as an independent candidate in the 2024 election, a race he is certain to win.

AFP contributed reporting.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more