The diary of Marina Peslyak, a Yabloko candidate for St. Petersburg’s Legislative Assembly. The anti-war politician documented every obstacle she faced during the campaign

2026-09-21

Elections have ended in Russia, during which Yabloko faced unprecedented pressure. The party’s federal list was removed back in the summer, and then it was the turn of the regional lists — only one of them, in Novgorod Oblast, managed to survive.

Single-mandate candidates running for regional parliaments from Yabloko complained of pressure, and several candidates were removed. The outlet Bereg published the diary of Marina Peslyak, a 21-year-old anti-war candidate for the St. Petersburg parliament, who nevertheless managed to defend her candidacy.

Peslyak kept a diary for more than a month, recording the election commission’s absurd demands, pressure from security officials, and the everyday concerns connected with the campaign. Meduza is publishing this material. Here is what Peslyak writes:

“The commission of one polling station complained that they did not have enough gifts for first-time voters. Usually such gifts are provided to commissions by the state. The chair asked me to ‘buy gifts for them.’ He said they would be very grateful for it, and would tell everyone who voted for me that it was from me: ‘After all, we will see who voted for you.’”

Voter Gifts Replace a Fair Campaign

A candidate described pressure, commission demands, and a request to buy voter gifts.

Even gratitude came with a ledger.