World press on Moscow mayoral campaign (August 20, 2013)

The Guardian has republished Kevin O'Flynn's article concerning the Moscow mayoral campaign that first appeared in the Observer. The article was headlined "Alexei Navalny won't make Moscow mayor but he has shaken up the campaign."

According to Kevin O'Flynn, Navalny's campaign is typical for any Western country but seems fresh and extraordinary for modern Russia, a country that "has forgotten the meaning of real political activism and electioneering."

The author notes that polling centres believe incumbent mayor Sergey Sobyanin will receive 63 per cent of the vote and Navalny, his major competitor, around 19 percent.

"Nevertheless, the campaign has shaken the Sobyanin campaign out of its complacency, throwing up corruption allegations and exposing other opposition parties as fake and jaded. If Navalny does manage to get through to a second round, things may become more unpredictable," he writes.

According to the author, even though Navalny is unlikely to win the elections, he has made the campaign much more vivid and interesting. 

"As the pressure mounts, there are fears that Navalny could be barred from the election or be arrested again, but he shows no sign of stopping the attacks on his opponent," he writes.