Hello, this is Navalny’s campaign headquarters.
In a normal situation, and in a normal election, a letter beginning like this could never appear—the candidate or the campaign manager would have written it. In our case, both of them have been arrested (again). So we are writing instead, and we are taking the liberty of addressing all citizens of the country on behalf of the campaign’s 163,171 volunteers and the 623,621 people who signed in support of Navalny’s nomination.
This is intolerable, and it cannot be allowed to continue. It is not even about Alexei Navalny himself, who is constantly being thrown back into a cell simply because he is acting the way a normal presidential candidate should act.
The point is that if we accept this, then all of us are doomed, and we will never have candidates who can actually win elections.
Right now, those in power—the Kremlin, Putin, whatever you want to call them—are conditioning us to think that simply taking part in an election “without coordination and prior permission” is something strange, exotic, irrational.
“No wonder they’re all being crushed like this,” we say, without noticing that by saying this and resigning ourselves to it, we are committing a terrible crime against ourselves, our children, and our future.
Think about it: how much have the “normal politicians” of the last 20 years really given us and the country? The very ones who operated with permission and prior approval?
No, enough. We need people who say what they think. Who seek support first and foremost from voters.
We must protect such politicians and, above all, defend our right to support them and vote for them.
We call on everyone who wants a better future for our country—regardless of their political views or whether they agree with Alexei Navalny’s platform—to stand together for political competition and for every citizen’s right to support the election campaign they believe in and that reflects their views.
We must make it unacceptable, illegal, and impossible to bar candidates from elections and to persecute activists for taking part in election campaigns.
We must create such an atmosphere in society that it will neither want to nor be able to accept “elections” without real competition and independent candidates.
We call on all decent people to take part in the October 7 action in any form and in any capacity: from going out into the street (follow the link, find your city, and join the action) to speaking out on social media.
Our demands are reasonable, simple, and lawful:
Political competition, and access to the presidential election for Navalny and other candidates.
Leave alone—and allow normal participation in election campaigns for—all activists, volunteers, observers, etc.
Right now, this is the best thing each of us can do in the interests of Russia and its citizens. Share this post if you support it.