Founder of the Russian opposition Yabloko party Professor Grigory Yavlinsky says he will appeal to the court after the Central Electoral Commission refused to register him as a presidential candidate, RIA Novosti reports on Friday night.
The commission considers almost 26 per cent of the signatures supporting Professor Yavlinsky's candidacy to be fake.
The politician says the commission's decision was politically motivated and unfair.
Professor Grigory Yavlinsky, aged 59, is a Russian economist and politician famous for the "500 days" program, aimed at establishing a market economy in the USSR. He ran for president twice - in 1996, against Boris Yeltsin, finishing fourth with 7.3% of the vote; and in 2000, against Vladimir Putin, finishing third with 5.8%. Many Russians believe that Professor Yavlinsky is the only presidential candidate truly independent from the Kremlin.
