“HELLO, Khabarovsk!” Alexei Navalny, Russia’s opposition leader and would-be presidential candidate, booms his greeting from a makeshift podium on the outskirts of this far-eastern city, a statue of a victorious revolutionary-era Soviet partisan looming behind him. The young crowd of several thousand, dotted with red balloons and banners reading “Navalny 20!8”, goes wild. After eight rallies across the country the candidate’s voice is hoarse, but he is fired up.
The rally, Khabarovsk’s largest in years, could be part of an American presidential campaign. Tall and charismatic, Mr Navalny looks the part. Russia’s electoral politics have long been neutered by President Vladimir Putin, who decides who can or cannot run; the population assumes the role of a television audience with little say over the show’s content. Mr Navalny’s campaign threatens to change that.
There are five months to go before Russia’s...Continue reading
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