A nonexistent international Golos movement was added to the register of “undesirable” organizations

A nonexistent international movement called Golos was added to the register of “undesirable” organizations

Russia's Justice Ministry added the international public movement "In Defense of Voters' Rights 'Golos'" to the register of "undesirable" organizations. The ministry's register shows that the Prosecutor General's Office declared the movement "undesirable" at the end of June 2026.

Stanislav Andreychuk, former co-chair of the Russian voter rights movement Golos, said he does not know what "international" movement is being referred to. He recalled that there had previously been the all-Russian Golos movement, which was declared a "foreign agent" in Russia, meaning that the Justice Ministry recognizes it as a Russian association. Andreychuk stressed that Golos had always been "a Russian association made up exclusively of Russian citizens."

"What kind of [international] movement this is, I personally do not understand. None of my former colleagues I have managed to speak with created anything like that or planned to. And there is nothing of the sort in the public sphere either. So overall, it looks like the dear state, during the elections, decided just in case to create something sufficiently vague itself, into which anyone can be written whose behavior or position it does not like during the voting days or immediately afterward," he noted.

Golos had been operating since 2000. First as an association, and then as a movement. In 2013, Russia's Justice Ministry declared the association a "foreign agent," after which some members of the association created the Golos movement, which also monitored elections. It too was declared a "foreign agent." In July 2025, Golos announced that it was ceasing operations.

@meduzalive