Liberal Democrats bet on youth – Newspaper Kommersant No. 48 (7493) of 03/22/2023

The LDPR plans to nominate Vice Speaker of the State Duma Boris Chernyshov, who twice ran for the Moscow City Duma and headed the capital branch of the party for three years, as mayor of Moscow. Earlier, A Just Russia – For Truth (SZRP) decided on its candidate, which in the September elections will be represented by State Duma deputy and leader of the Moscow branch Dmitry Gusev. The political scientist considers Mr. Chernyshov the optimal candidate for the Liberal Democratic Party due to three advantages: age, education and a long-standing connection with Moscow. But even for third place, he still has to fight, the expert warns.

On the upcoming nomination of Boris Chernyshov for mayor of Moscow, journalists were told on March 21 by the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, Leonid Slutsky. Alexei Didenko, deputy head of the LDPR faction in the State Duma, explained to Kommersant that the decision is still preliminary, and the final decision will be made by the party’s supreme council “within the time limits established by law.” According to Mr. Didenko, the current leader of the capital’s Liberal Democrats Dmitry Koshlakov-Krestovsky, State Duma deputies Yaroslav Nilov, Dmitry Svishchev and Andrey Svintsov are among the candidates being considered, but Boris Chernyshov’s candidacy is still a priority.

“Boris Alexandrovich (Chernyshov.— “b”) has managerial experience, he took place as a coordinator of a regional branch in his native Voronezh, then came to study at a university in Moscow, led the metropolitan cell of the party, which has always been in the zone of increased attention from the governing bodies, ”said Alexei Didenko. Mr. Chernyshov himself told RIA Novosti that he had already informed his relatives about the nomination and they supported him. “With their support, I am sure of success. I am grateful to the leadership of the Liberal Democratic Party, party leader Leonid Eduardovich Slutsky, party members in the capital, who will also help me in this process, ”he said.

Boris Chernyshov was born in 1991 in Voronezh, in 2013-2016 he was the coordinator of the Moscow branch of the Liberal Democratic Party, twice unsuccessfully ran for the Moscow City Duma (in 2014 and 2019). In 2016, he was elected to the State Duma on the party list as the leader of the Moscow regional group. In 2020, Mr. Chernyshov was appointed deputy head of Rosobrnadzor, but already in 2021 he was again elected to the State Duma on the federal part of the list. As vice speaker, he oversees the youth policy and civil society development committees. In addition, Boris Chernyshov is a graduate of the so-called school of governors, a management reserve training program based on the Higher School of Public Administration of the RANEPA, whose students are often appointed by the heads of regions.

If nominated, Vice Speaker Chernyshov will be the most “status” candidate for mayor of Moscow from the Liberal Democratic Party. In the two previous elections, the party was represented by the current head of the Khabarovsk Territory, Mikhail Degtyarev: in 2013, as an ordinary deputy of the State Duma (took fifth place with 2.86% of the vote), and in 2018, as head of the Duma Committee on Physical Culture and Sports (6, 72% and fourth place).

The LDPR became the second party to announce its candidate for mayor of the capital. Earlier, in mid-February, SRZP leader Sergei Mironov announced that his party would nominate State Duma deputy and head of the Moscow branch, Dmitry Gusev, for mayor. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation has so far named only a short list of “candidates for candidates”, among which the most likely candidates are State Duma deputies Denis Parfyonov, Vadim Kumin and the first deputy chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party Yuri Afonin. However, as a source close to the leadership of the Communist Party told Kommersant, the likelihood of Mr. Afonin being nominated for mayor has recently decreased. He oversees the party’s regional elections, which are expected to be difficult this year, and therefore, most likely, will focus his efforts on this work, the interlocutor of Kommersant explained.

Another opposition parliamentary party, New People, has not yet named potential mayoral candidates. The current mayor Sergei Sobyanin has not yet announced his participation in the elections, however, as Kommersant previously reported with reference to an informed source, he has such an intention.

In the Moscow mayoral elections, second and third places can also be considered prizes, political analyst Konstantin Kalachev believes, and “a third place for the Liberal Democratic Party in the capital would be a serious success, confirming the party’s capabilities.” According to the expert, Boris Chernyshov has three advantages: age, education, and a long-standing relationship with Moscow, where he has an idea of ​​the city’s agenda, voter requests, and communication channels. In addition, Mr. Chernyshov is a good candidate for the Liberal Democratic Party due to working relations with the mayor’s office, Mr. Kalachev adds. However, for a place in the top three, he will still have to compete with the nominees of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and the New People, the political scientist predicts.

Elena Rozhkova, Andrey Vinokurov