On the eve of Russia's September parliamentary elections, the country's Supreme Court upheld a ban on Yabloko — the sole registered party opposing the war in Ukraine — while a separate court sentenced its deputy leader, Lev Shlosberg, to over eleven years in prison for criticizing the military. The twin rulings, arriving on the same day, reflect a long and familiar pattern in which legal instruments are wielded not to adjudicate but to foreclose: to remove from the ballot what cannot be removed from conscience. In silencing the last organized electoral voice against the conflict, the Kremlin h
Russia upholds election ban on anti-war Yabloko party, jails deputy leader
Yabloko deputy leader Lev Shlosberg sentenced to 11 years and one month in prison; dozens of party supporters and journalists detained by police during court proceedings.
The entire nation will shudder at this list of martyrs
Mark
Why does it matter that Yabloko was the only registered party opposing the war? Couldn't people just vote for other parties?
Mimi
Because in Russia's electoral system, you need a registered party to run candidates. Yabloko wasn't just one option among many—it was the only legal vehicle for anti-war voters. Without it on the ballot, there's no institutional way to register that opposition through elections.
Mark
The ban came from another party, Rodina, not directly from the government. Does that distinction matter?
Mimi
On paper, yes. But Rodina is described as pro-Kremlin, and the Supreme Court upheld the challenge. The mechanism might look procedural, but the effect is the same: the state's highest court removed the opposition party. It's a way of distributing responsibility.
Mark
Shlosberg's sentence is severe. What exactly did he say that warranted eleven years?
Mimi
He criticized the war publicly and called it a catastrophe. Under post-2022 law, that counts as discrediting the military. The legislation is broad enough that almost any negative statement about the conflict can trigger prosecution. He wasn't alone—others have faced similar charges.
Mark
Why did police detain supporters and journalists at the court?
Mimi
Partly to prevent a show of solidarity, partly to send a message. If dozens of people are taken to police stations for simply attending a trial, it chills participation. People become afraid to be seen supporting the party.
Mark
What happens next for Yabloko?
Mimi
They've said they'll pursue a supervisory review, but the odds are long. The real question is whether any organized opposition survives the September elections at all.
The Pulse
- Russia's only anti-war party has been stripped from the September ballot, leaving millions of war-opposed voters with no formal electoral recourse.
- On the same day, deputy leader Lev Shlosberg was sentenced to eleven years in prison for statements deemed to 'discredit' the military — a charge that has become the Kremlin's preferred instrument against public dissent since 2022.
- The legal assault did not come from state prosecutors alone: a Kremlin-aligned nationalist party filed the challenge against Yabloko, accusing it of Western financing and destabilization — claims the party flatly rejected.
- Police detained dozens of Yabloko supporters and journalists gathered outside the courtroom, with party officials describing the arrests as deliberate intimidation rather than routine law enforcement.
- Shlosberg, unbroken in his final statement, warned that the full death toll of the war — names and all — would one day be known, and that the nation would shudder at the reckoning.
On the eve of Russia's September parliamentary elections, the country's Supreme Court upheld a ban on Yabloko — the sole registered party opposing the war in Ukraine — while a separate court sentenced its deputy leader, Lev Shlosberg, to over eleven years in prison for criticizing the military. The twin rulings, arriving on the same day, reflect a long and familiar pattern in which legal instruments are wielded not to adjudicate but to foreclose: to remove from the ballot what cannot be removed from conscience. In silencing the last organized electoral voice against the conflict, the Kremlin has not ended dissent so much as driven it further into the territory of personal courage and historical memory.
Russia's Supreme Court has upheld a ban barring Yabloko from September's parliamentary elections, eliminating the only registered political party that openly called for an end to the war in Ukraine. The Appeals Chamber confirmed an earlier decision to remove Yabloko's federal candidate list from the State Duma ballot, though the party said it would seek a supervisory review. For Yabloko, the ruling was not merely a legal defeat — it was the erasure of the last formal channel through which millions of war-opposed Russians might register dissent at the ballot box.
The challenge against Yabloko came not from state prosecutors but from Rodina, a small nationalist party aligned with the Kremlin, which accused Yabloko of being funded by Western governments and of seeking to destabilize Russia. Yabloko rejected the accusations entirely, framing the ban as straightforward political suppression.
The same day brought a second blow: a court sentenced Lev Shlosberg, Yabloko's deputy leader, to eleven years and one month in prison. His conviction rested on charges of damaging the reputation of Russia's armed forces and spreading false information about the military — offenses defined under legislation passed after the February 2022 invasion. The laws have effectively criminalized organized criticism of the war, placing Shlosberg alongside human rights advocate Oleg Orlov and the late Alexei Navalny among those prosecuted for public opposition.
Shlosberg did not soften his words before the court. He described the conflict as a catastrophe for Russia and spoke of thousands of lives cut short, warning that the full and named accounting of the dead would one day be made public — and that the country would be shaken by it.
Outside the courtroom, police detained dozens of Yabloko supporters and journalists who had gathered for the verdict. Party officials described the arrests as deliberate intimidation. The coordinated timing of the election ban and the sentencing has led opposition figures and human rights observers to characterize the actions as a systematic effort to extinguish electoral alternatives before the September vote — democracy's space in Russia narrowing, by design, to nothing.
Russia's Supreme Court has upheld a ban preventing Yabloko, the only registered political party openly calling for an end to the war in Ukraine, from competing in September's parliamentary elections. The decision came down on the same day another court sentenced the party's deputy leader, Lev Shlosberg, to eleven years and one month in prison for statements critical of the Russian military.
Yabloko announced Monday that its appeal against the election ban had failed. The party, which has positioned itself as representing millions of Russians opposed to the conflict, said the ruling effectively removed the sole electoral option for voters seeking to voice dissent on the war. The Supreme Court's Appeals Chamber upheld an earlier decision to revoke Yabloko's federal candidate list from the State Duma ballot, the statement confirmed, though the party indicated it would pursue a supervisory review.
The legal challenge against Yabloko originated not from state prosecutors but from Rodina, a small nationalist party aligned with the Kremlin. Rodina accused Yabloko of being financed by Western countries and of attempting to destabilize both the election and Russia itself. Yabloko rejected these claims entirely, framing the ban as political suppression of legitimate opposition.
Shlosberg's conviction rested on charges of damaging the reputation of Russia's armed forces and disseminating false information about the military. His case falls under legislation enacted after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, statutes that carry severe penalties for what the law terms "discrediting" the military or spreading deliberate falsehoods about the conflict. The legal framework has effectively silenced most organized criticism of the war, though individual dissidents have continued to speak. Shlosberg joined figures like human rights advocate Oleg Orlov and the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny in facing prosecution for public opposition to what he called the war's catastrophic human cost.
In his closing statement to the court, Shlosberg did not retreat. He described the conflict as a disaster for Russia and spoke of thousands of lives ended prematurely. "Sooner or later, the precise and complete death toll—with names included—will be made public, and the entire nation will shudder at this list of martyrs," he told the courtroom, according to his remarks.
The day of the court decision saw police detain dozens of Yabloko supporters and journalists who had gathered to hear the verdict. Some were taken to nearby police stations. Kirill Goncharov, who leads Yabloko's Moscow branch, told the independent outlet Novaya Gazeta that officers appeared unusually tense. Party leader Nikolay Rybakov characterized the detentions as a deliberate act of intimidation.
The coordinated timing of the election ban and Shlosberg's sentencing underscores a systematic narrowing of political space ahead of the September vote. Opposition figures and human rights observers have described the actions as evidence of democracy's continued erosion in Russia and as a direct attempt to eliminate electoral alternatives for those opposed to the Ukraine war.
Notable Quotes
The lives of countless thousands of people have been cut short during this time. Sooner or later, the precise and complete death toll—with names included—will be made public, and the entire nation will shudder at this list of martyrs.— Lev Shlosberg, in his closing statement at trial
The detentions were characterized as intimidation by party leadership.— Nikolay Rybakov, Yabloko party leader
Want the full story?
Read the original at Al Jazeera ↗
Politics & Governance