Moscow City Duma deputy from Yabloko Vladimir Ryzhkov lost his mandate at his own request

The Moscow City Duma on Wednesday prematurely terminated the powers of a member of the Yabloko faction, former first vice speaker of the State Duma Vladimir Ryzhkov. He has been living abroad for more than a year and a half, but he asked to resign himself, explaining his departure for “personal and work reasons,” as well as the imminent expiration of his mandate. Deputies from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation wondered why the capital’s parliament for a year recognized the reason for Mr. Ryzhkov’s absence as valid, but they did not receive an answer.

The draft resolution on the early termination of the powers of Vladimir Ryzhkov was presented by deputy Alexander Semennikov (United Russia). He said that on December 25, 2023, Yabloko sent a letter to Speaker Alexei Shaposhnikov, in which he announced his resignation “due to changes in family, personal and work circumstances.” Mr. Semennikov recalled that in the current convocation of the Moscow City Duma (MGD) the issue of termination of powers has already been decided twice: in September 2020, in connection with the death of the vice speaker from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Nikolai Gubenko, and in January 2021, when another communist, Oleg Sheremetyev , convicted of fraud. “Now the third case is a written statement of resignation,” explained the speaker. “We have every opportunity to satisfy the statement of our colleague, the issue was considered by the commission on organizing the work of the Duma, and it supported it.”

Let us remember that Vladimir Ryzhkov gained a wealth of experience at the federal level before being elected to the Moscow City Duma. He was elected to the State Duma in the first four convocations, and in 1997–1999 was its first vice-speaker. Later he served as co-chairman of the Republican Party of Russia, then RPR-PARNAS. In 2016, he ran for the State Duma from Yabloko, but did not get elected, and in 2021 he was elected from the same Yabloko to the Moscow City Duma in district No. 37 to replace Nikolai Gubenko, receiving 21% of the vote. Kommersant’s sources did not rule out that Mr. Ryzhkov could have received the post of vice-speaker, but in the end it was taken by non-factional deputy-journalist Andrei Medvedev.

After the start of the special operation, Vladimir Ryzhkov left Russia. In the summer of 2022, the Yabloko faction reported that he had gone on vacation to Germany and would allegedly return by the beginning of the autumn session.

However, since then, Mr. Ryzhkov has not appeared at meetings of the capital’s parliament, each time notifying the MHD apparatus that he is on a business trip. At the same time, during the first year, deputies invariably, by a majority of votes, recognized the reason for their colleague’s absence as valid. And only in September 2023, when Mikhail Stupin, expelled from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and recognized as a foreign agent, went abroad, the City Duma refused to consider this a valid reason.

Pavel Tarasov (Communist Party of the Russian Federation) had a question for the speaker, which, according to him, previously “they tried to ask “from the floor” when the question of voting on the absence of Deputy Ryzhkov was raised”: “Why were positive decisions made about his absence from meetings and why the question his powers have not been raised before? In fact, the deputy for the 37th district has not exercised his powers for a very, very long time. Why is there such a delay in the decision, why are we only now considering it?” – asked the communist.

In response, Alexander Semennikov stated that the question was being raised in connection with the statement of Vladimir Ryzhkov himself, and not because of his “absenteeism.” Let us remind you that, according to federal law, the absence of a regional deputy for more than six months at meetings without a good reason is grounds for deprivation of his mandate. “The appearance of this issue on the agenda is not related to the quality of colleague Ryzhkov’s performance of his powers, but to his personal statement. Regarding how our colleague worked and why decisions were made to recognize the reasons for his absence as positive, a vote was held, each deputy made a decision himself,” the United Russia member recalled. And what “was known about Deputy Ryzhkov satisfied” the majority of parliamentarians, the speaker concluded.

Communist Dmitry Loktev, who spoke next, complained that residents of the 37th district were again deprived of their representative in the Moscow City Duma. He described Mr. Ryzhkov as “a typical right-wing liberal politician from the 1990s,” “sort of an oppositionist,” who supported the course of the Moscow mayor’s office.

With the beginning of the SVO, he “spoke out against its implementation and went abroad, essentially leaving his voters alone,” the deputy continued: “But for some reason, the Duma majority of United Russia recognized for a long time his emigration as a valid reason for his absence.”

Here “Yabloko” Sergei Mitrokhin has already taken the floor, who assured his colleagues that the 37th district “will not become orphaned” due to the termination of the powers of Deputy Ryzhkov, since Mr. Mitrokhin himself “has been involved in it for a long time – after the death of Nikolai Gubenko.”

Alexander Semennikov summed up the discussion: “Yes, there was information that he (Vladimir Ryzhkov.— “Kommersant”) conducts teaching work. Unlike some of our colleagues, he is not even recognized as a foreign agent. Therefore, it seems to me that these hypotheses, since they have no legal basis… The fact is this: there is a statement from a deputy. We have a little room for maneuver here, we must comply with what the law says. And it’s up to voters to evaluate the work of Deputy Ryzhkov.”

After this, the deputies almost unanimously (with one abstention) supported the resolution to terminate the powers of Vladimir Ryzhkov. Let us note that he himself did not participate in the meeting, which was held via video link, but later commented on the situation. “This decision is largely forced. Well-known external circumstances and personal reasons made it too difficult to exercise authority, the politician wrote in his Telegram channel, attaching reports on work in 2021–2023. — I tried to help everyone who contacted me. And helped a lot of people with their problems.”

Andrey Prah