Russia bars anti-war Yabloko party from September elections after its open opposition to the Ukraine war

The ruling followed a lawsuit brought by Rodina, a pro-Kremlin nationalist party. Rodina accused Yabloko of receiving undeclared campaign support, including alleged foreign backing. Yabloko rejected the allegations and described the ruling as politically motivated.

Yabloko removed from the ballot

The Supreme Court cancelled the registration of Yabloko’s federal candidate list for the State Duma election. Party leader Nikolai Rybakov said the party would appeal the decision.

Yabloko has no seats in the current State Duma but remains one of Russia’s longest-standing liberal political movements. The party had planned to use the election campaign to advocate for an end to the war in Ukraine through a ceasefire and negotiations.

The ruling further narrows the space for openly anti-war political campaigning in Russia.

A shrinking field of opposition

The decision comes amid increasingly tight restrictions on political opposition in Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Critics of the war have faced imprisonment, exile, legal restrictions and designations such as “foreign agent.”

The September parliamentary elections will determine all 450 seats in the State Duma. The ruling United Russia party remains dominant, while several other parties represented in parliament generally operate within the boundaries of Russia’s current political system.

For Yabloko supporters, however, the court ruling removes an established electoral channel for expressing an explicitly anti-war position.

Small groups of supporters gathered outside the Supreme Court after the decision, with some protesters chanting “Shame!” as the ruling was announced.

The party’s planned appeal could still affect its participation, but for now Yabloko has been excluded from the September parliamentary contest.