Maxim Momot. First Japanese warning

First Japanese warning
Maxim Momot

Publication date: February 24, 2004

Today, Interfax published a statement by Russian presidential candidate Irina Khakamada, in which she talks about the possibility of withdrawing her candidacy due to the fact that “the election campaign for the Russian presidential election is increasingly acquiring features of lawlessness and lies.” “In such a situation, the competitive struggle of ideas and alternatives becomes impossible, ” Khakamada emphasized. “ If the current situation does not change in any way, I do not rule out the withdrawal of my candidacy from the presidential elections.” She invited all opposition candidates, primarily Nikolai Kharitonov and Sergei Glazyev, to leave the election race as a sign of protest.

Sergei Markov , director of the Institute for Political Research, sees two reasons that could influence Khakamada’s decision to make such a statement. Firstly, this is the weakness of her election campaign, which was not supported by either the Union of Right Forces or Yabloko. Secondly, the hyperloyalty of officials who are responsible for Vladimir Putin’s campaign. They, according to Markov, “are constantly setting up the president.” The president himself has nothing to do with the known facts interpreted by opposition candidates as a violation of election legislation.

There is a possibility that Irina Khakamada will carry out her threat. This is possible, says the director of the Institute of Political Studies, if it becomes clear to her that she still won’t get more than 2-3%. At the same time, the call for Kharitonov and Glazyev to quit the fight is unlikely to find a response from them. Unlike Khakamada, such posturing is not profitable for them. After all, for Kharitonov, the elections are a chance to declare himself as an independent politician, for Glazyev it is a serious application for participation in the 2008 campaign .

Indeed, Nikolai Kharitonov quite quickly expressed his attitude to the problem. “Since she [Khakamada] makes such proposals, why doesn’t she withdraw her candidacy? She might also advise me to divorce my wife ,” he remarked sarcastically.

Observers assess the situation differently. Igor Yakovlev , a full member of the Academy of Political Science , in a commentary to RJ linked Irina Khakamada’s statements with the desire to disrupt the elections. Such scenarios have been considered for a long time. Sergei Mironov was nominated specifically to neutralize this threat from the Party of Life.

In the expert’s opinion, it is necessary to keep in mind the difference in the degree of opposition between Irina Khakamada and Nikolai Kharitonov. The first is in radical and irreconcilable opposition to the Kremlin. This follows from her statements in which the president is accused of all sins. Kharitonov should rather be classified as a constructive opposition. It is also necessary to take into account that there is no organization behind Khakamada, and the candidate from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation in his statement referred to the opinion of the party.

Valery Egorov , head of the election campaign, considers the possibility of a voluntary withdrawal of any candidate from the election campaign to be purely hypothetical. Sector of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Organizational and Analytical Directorate of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In an interview with RJ, he regarded Irina Khakamada’s statement only as a desire to demonstrate his extreme opposition.

For Kharitonov and Glazyev, losing the platform also makes no sense. For Khakamada, such actions, on the contrary, bring certain dividends. “These are efforts to win the sympathy of radical liberals; someone needs to be woken up, ” notes Egorov. “ We are dealing with an attempt to make maximum use of the protest electorate.”

The situation is different for the left. Kharitonov’s call for Glazyev to withdraw his candidacy, voiced recently, is obviously connected with the former’s desire to present himself as a single candidate of the left. “Their problem ,” says RJ’s interlocutor, “ is the problem of a split in the left flank; the problem of consolidation for them will remain after the elections.”