CPRF State Duma candidate Nikolai Bondarenko detained over a post with a photo of Navalny

CPRF State Duma candidate Nikolai Bondarenko detained over a post with a photo of Navalny

In Saratov, CPRF candidate Nikolai Bondarenko was detained. A message about this appeared on his Telegram channel.

“I was detained by 10 police officers and forcibly taken to court,” the deputy told Vedomosti.

Bondarenko was charged under the article on displaying “extremist symbols.” A fine or arrest under this article means Bondarenko will not be able to take part in the elections.

The CPRF called the detention political persecution and said the reason was a post with a photo of Navalny on an account that does not belong to Bondarenko. Earlier, several other potential candidates, including Boris Nadezhdin and Yabloko members, were barred from the elections because of this article.

▶️ What Nikolai Bondarenko is known for

Bondarenko is one of the CPRF’s best-known regional politicians and one of the party’s popular political bloggers. He has served in the Saratov Regional Duma since 2017.

Bondarenko became popular in 2018 after living for a month on 3,500 rubles to test whether it was possible to survive on a food basket of that cost. This happened after a local official said that this amount was вполне enough for “minimum physiological needs.”

Today, Bondarenko’s YouTube channel has two million subscribers; in his videos he often criticizes officials and United Russia. In this election, the communists nominated Bondarenko to head a territorial group in Udmurtia and Perm Krai.

Nikolai Bondarenko / Photo from the Telegram channel “Deputy’s Diary”

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