Putin's failed challenger in the last presidential election has left Russia
Politician Boris Nadezhdin announced on his Telegram channel that he has left Russia.
He posted a video against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
"There is good news: I am alive and free. Alas, not in Russia yet. Now I need to look around and figure out how to live on. I will write about my plans later," he said.
Boris Nadezhdin is a former State Duma deputy from the Union of Right Forces. He gained wide recognition in 2024, when he tried to run for president of Russia on an antiwar platform. However, the Central Election Commission refused to register him, declaring invalid 9,000 signatures collected in his support.
In June 2026, the politician announced plans to run for the State Duma. On July 10, he was designated a "foreign agent," and three days later police detained him but then released him. On July 16, it was reported that the Federal Bailiff Service had barred him from traveling abroad because of a previously closed enforcement proceeding concerning bankruptcy.
On July 17, a court in Moscow fined Nadezhdin 1,000 rubles in an administrative case over the display of "extremist" symbols. The reason for the charge was a 2023 video on his Telegram channel in which a photograph of the late opposition figure Alexei Navalny was "displayed" for ten seconds. Two days after the court hearing, he announced that he was ending his election campaign for the State Duma.
Source: Current Time
