United Russia Borovsky and communist Kondrashov refused to participate in the elections to the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk region

The mayor of Sayansk (Irkutsk region) Oleg Borovsky withdrew from the elections to the regional parliament, where he ran on the list of United Russia (ER). He accompanied his demarche with sharp criticism of the head of the regional government, Konstantin Zaitsev, the second number on the United Russia list. This is the second such case in three days: on Monday, the former mayor of Irkutsk, Viktor Kondrashov, who was running in a single-mandate constituency from the Communist Party, refused to participate in the elections. He was also marked by critical statements addressed to the leadership of the regional committee.

Oleg Borovsky announced the withdrawal of his candidacy on August 2 in Telegramby posting a photo of the corresponding application to the regional election commission. Referring to the provisions of the regional law, Mr. Borovsky indicated “personal reasons” as a refusal to further participate in the campaign. The election committee of Kommersant confirmed receipt of the application, specifying that it was received by the commission on the same day.

The mayor of Sayansk headed the territorial group No. 16 of the United Russia list (it includes the territories of Sayansk, Ziminsky and Zalarinsky districts, together with regional centers). The second number there was the mayor of the Zalarinsky district Vladimir Samoylovich, the third – the chairman of the city council Zima Galina Polyntseva. The group was closed by the head of the regional executive committee of the United Russia, Dmitry Myasnikov. He is also running in this territory as a single-mandate.

The publication of the statement was preceded by another fast, in which Mr. Borovsky sharply criticized the chairman of the regional government, Konstantin Zaitsev, who occupies the second line in the head of the United Russia list after the governor Igor Kobzev. “Zaitsev is lobbying Angarsk and Bratsk. I’m happy for my colleagues. They are for development, but nothing for us. Moreover, they left us without money for the summer, get ready for the winter as you like,” the mayor could not restrain his emotions. “There is no money for us. And this “eccentric” is prophesied as a speaker!

Oleg Borovsky explained to Kommersant that his demarche was connected with a change in the agreements “between the mayors and the government”, “mayors and the party”, concluded at the start of the election campaign.

“Zaitsev told us, the mayors, at the end of spring with tears in his eyes: endure this summer, there is no money, look for reserves. Already in June, it turned out that some cities were allocated 100 million rubles each. ostensibly to increase the tax base. And yesterday I learned that Bratsk and Angarsk were given a subsidy for three years in the total amount of about 5 billion rubles. These cities are worthy of development, but Sayansk, Taishet, Cheremkhovo and others, it turns out, are not worthy. I hope the governor will not continue to lobby Zaitsev for the post of speaker of the Legislative Assembly,” Borovsky explained.

The mayor also stressed that he “does not intend to quarrel with the party” and is ready to support a single-mandate candidate in the constituency. Mr. Borovsky has not yet received a reaction from “from above” to his statements: “Everyone is silent, although I notified the executive committee of the party, the governor’s office, and the regional policy department. I see only an indirect reaction – criticism through controlled Telegram channels.

The government of the Angara region and the regional branch of the United Russia do not officially comment on the incident. A Kommersant source close to the party notes that “Oleg Valeryevich (Borovsky.— “b”) with his characteristic charisma once again attracted attention. “He does not oppose the governor or the party, but fights for a resource for Sayansk. Yes, he is not shy in his methods, but he has a goal that he will achieve. The situation will not affect the results of the elections, ”says the interlocutor of Kommersant.

It is interesting that three days earlier, on July 31, Viktor Kondrashov, ex-mayor of Irkutsk, deputy of the Legislative Assembly, announced his refusal to participate in the elections. He ran for the Communist Party of the Russian Federation in a single-mandate constituency in one of the districts of Irkutsk.

Mr. Kondrashov accompanied his removal with criticism of the regional party committee and the Communist Party faction in the Legislative Assembly, describing these structures as “subordinate to clan and family interests.”

“After the refusal, I spoke personally with Levchenko (Sergey Levchenko, State Duma deputy, first secretary of the Irkutsk regional committee of the Communist Party.— “b”) complained. He reacted with misunderstanding, they say, why didn’t I say anything before. But I have already seen enough in the faction, where there were cases of behind-the-scenes agreements with other parties, and in the regional committee, where the “parishioners” serve only one “pastor”,” Viktor Kondrashov told Kommersant.

The regional committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation does not comment on the situation. Sources close to the party indicate that Mr. Kondrashov’s statement about his withdrawal from the elections coincided with the arrival in Irkutsk of the head of the Rostec state corporation, Sergei Chemezov. It should be noted that the main competitor of the ex-mayor in the district from United Russia was the head of the Rostec representative office in the region, Sergey Balyaskin. “Balyaskin was initially considered the favorite in the district, and now the election results are becoming even more predictable,” says one of Kommersant’s interlocutors.

Vlad Nikiforov, Irkutsk