Alexander Baunov, Senior Fellow at Carnegie Russia
The
principle of ‘protest, and you’ll be heard,’ that emerged when entire
unsatisfied districts were excluded from the home renovation
bill has been confirmed once again,” he wrote on
Facebook, referring to a massive urban renewal project planned by City Hall.
“Notably, it wasn’t the Communists who
emerged as the alternative, but the very liberals who, as it is widely believed, do not stand a chance.”
Grigory Melkonyants, of election monitoring NGO Golos
“The municipal councils are gaining independence,” he wrote on Facebook.
Alexei Navalny, opposition leader:
“Any political action brings results and contributes to the cause. A Like, a Share, a leaflet, showing up at a rally or taking part in an election. Do something, and it changes the atmosphere. Nothing is predetermined and there should be no despair. People see clearly that the Kremlin’s emperor has no clothes,” he wrote on his blog.
Vladimir Milov, former deputy Energy Minister
“In essence, I believe that this result is very positive, because it has burst out against very low expectations, has shown that it’s possible to run and win even through heavy administrative pressure and fraud, and even win the majority — or, in some cases, totality — of seats in very important districts. It’s a great contribution to the build-up of momentum for the presidential election,” he wrote in an English-language post on Facebook.