Russia's Supreme Court bars Yabloko party from September parliamentary elections

Aug 11, 2026

Russia's Supreme Court has barred the liberal Yabloko party, the country's last remaining anti-war political group, from September 2026 parliamentary elections. The ruling, sparked by a lawsuit from the pro-Kremlin Rodina party alleging campaign violations and foreign funding, removes the only ballot option openly calling for a ceasefire in Ukraine. Despite a crackdown that has jailed key members, Yabloko leaders reject the allegations as groundless and vow to appeal the decision.

Yabloko party election ban

▪Russia's Supreme Court barred the liberal Yabloko party from participating in the September 2026 parliamentary elections, annulling its previous registration.
▪Russia's Central Election Commission had previously registered the Yabloko party's candidate list on July 29, 2026, allowing it to run alongside 10 other parties.
▪The Supreme Court's ruling on August 10, 2026, removes Russia's only remaining officially registered political party that openly opposes the war in Ukraine from the ballot.

Kremlin suppression of dissent

▪Anti-war politician Boris Nadezhdin was designated as a 'foreign agent' in July 2026 and subsequently fled Russia.
▪Senior Yabloko member Lev Shlosberg faces up to 10 years in prison in Pskov on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military.
▪The Yabloko party's deputy chairman, Maxim Kruglov, was sentenced to seven years in prison in June 2026 for spreading false information about the Russian military.
▪Yabloko deputy chairman Boris Vishnevsky was designated as a 'foreign agent' in 2024, forcing him to step down from the St. Petersburg city council.

Rodina party lawsuit allegations

▪Rodina party representatives accused Yabloko of extremism and supporting the outlawed 'international LGBT movement' in Russia.
▪The pro-Kremlin nationalist Rodina party filed the lawsuit seeking to bar Yabloko, accusing the party of campaign finance violations and receiving undeclared foreign funding.
▪Rodina party leader Alexei Zhuravlev accused Yabloko of violating copyright rules by using Soviet songs and placing advertisements on banned social media platforms.

Yabloko anti-war platform

▪On August 6, 2026, exiled Russian opposition figures, including Yulia Navalnaya, urged voters to support Yabloko as a safe way to express disagreement with the government.
▪Leaders of other Russian parties, including Gennady Zyuganov of the Communist Party and Sergei Mironov of A Just Russia, publicly criticized Yabloko for its anti-war stance.
▪The Yabloko party campaigned on a 43-word platform calling for a ceasefire agreement, diplomacy, and the achievement of peace in Ukraine.

Public protests outside courthouse

▪Protesters outside the Moscow courthouse on August 10, 2026, carried apples to show their affiliation with Yabloko, which translates to 'apple' in Russian.
▪Following the Supreme Court's ruling on August 10, 2026, approximately one hundred Yabloko supporters gathered outside the Moscow courthouse chanting 'Shame! Shame!'.

Party appeal plans

▪Yabloko chairman Nikolai Rybakov rejected the lawsuit's allegations during the court hearing, describing them as an unconstitutional attack on freedom of thought.
▪Yabloko founder Grigory Yavlinsky and party chairman Nikolai Rybakov condemned the Supreme Court's ruling and announced that the party will appeal the decision.