This excerpt from the documentary project Deadline takes us back to October 2012, when the high-profile mayoral election was taking place in Khimki, with environmental activist Yevgenia Chirikova among the candidates. In the footage, Alexei, together with Boris Nemtsov, inspects one of the polling stations, speaks with election observers, and eases the tense atmosphere with his trademark humor. This unique archival footage vividly captures the spirit of the early protest movement and shows the warm working relationship between two leaders of the Russian opposition.
Text version
0:00
Hello, Borya, you're in Khimki, right?
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What's the address there? I'll swing by your
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polling station now.
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The Downhouse settlement, as always.
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All right,
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okay
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with a ribbon.
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Nemtsov somehow found a polling station like he was in a sauna.
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He made it to a fancy polling station. No, no,
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I don't recommend some random one there. Chirikova told me to come to
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this polling station, so I came here so as not to get in the way.
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Well, the chair of our commission is the very
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best—she cracked. Everyone who drove up for the
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carousel voting (organized multiple voting) and saw me immediately disappeared somewhere in horror
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.
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Observers dropped by one polling station, well,
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they're threatening each other. Chirikov's
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observers are these huge hulking guys.
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Each one is taller than me, big as anything.
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Turns out all the observers from Pauk ("Spider," a Russian nickname/stage name)
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are just these huge, thuggish men. And we have
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some from Pauk too, for example.
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No. No. We don't need any more stars here
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showing up. Why? What do you mean, we don't? Here he is, he's arrived.
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Why do we need a star?
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Do you know each other or not?
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We don't.
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No.
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You don't watch crime reports, then.
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Crime reports, no. I only watch
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culture. The Kultura channel.
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They don't show me there.
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He's a fan, just a fan of Pauk.
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This is
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the first polling station I've been to where
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some columns and these forms were already filled in. Putin
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got 91% of the vote here
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here. Yes, but that won't happen again.
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With turnout at 72%
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I wasn't
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an observer. You were the chair of the
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commission then
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The EMERCOM Academy votes here.
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And how did that happen?
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Chechens just pulled up.
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Anzhelik, tell us honestly that more than 91%
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will never happen again.
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Could I get the two of you—the commission chair
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and the observer—
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or no, a commission member with me.
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Stand up, stand up. Better to stand so your husband
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at least understands it's not just about the legs.
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It's fine, it's fine. My legs are visible.
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Well, do you want them to be? Then
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then say so, let me
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retake the photo—so fussy,
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want the legs to be visible. The legs visible.
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I like it
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you just blended right together, standing like that. Look how
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nicely it turned out.
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What? Anzhelika's legs are great, of course. I
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am clearly the odd one out here altogether.
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Peace and quiet, blessed calm. Everything's by the book
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Nemtsov is hugging the chair of the
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commission.
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Nice photo.
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Anzhelika is cool
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she kind of looks like Tina Arena, really resembles Tina
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it's actually pretty funny
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you're throwing your weight around
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No, but what can I do now, seriously?
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Not come at all? Especially since I didn't even want to come here
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Chirikova sent me here
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Putin was here too—got stuck in traffic
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after that they built an interchange on the MKAD (Moscow Ring Road)
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Putin got stuck in traffic. Well yes, once
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in a lifetime
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There's the wonderful Novokurkinskoye Highway here, which goes
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out.
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When you were deputy prime minister, did they
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block off the road for you or not?
3:00
There were no traffic jams back then. Zhenka,
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you okay?
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Well, nervous, of course. But otherwise okay,
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feeling lively. Beautiful dog. What kind of
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dog is it?
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Voted, did you?
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We voted.
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And her?
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Her too.
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I think it's an Alabai.