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Sergei Sobyanin has been elected Mayor of Moscow, photo by EPA/BGNES
Sergei Sobyanin, the candidate endorsed by Russia's rulers, has won the election for mayor of Moscow.
Sobyanin secured 51.3% - just above the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.
His main rival, opposition leader Alexei Navalny, gathered 27.2%.
The Communist candidate, Ivan Melnikov, came third with 10.7%.
Voter turnout in Moscow was low - 32%.
Navalny called for a runoff and refused to recognize the results, saying they had been rigged.
He warned that if he was denied a runoff, he would "appeal to the citizens and ask them to take to the streets of Moscow". City authorities have allowed Navalny to hold a rally Monday evening restricting the number of participants to 2 500.
The opposition leader is currently on bail after being found guilty of embezzlement in what he insists was a political trial.
Moscow's electoral commission is firm there had been no serious violations and dismissed any possibility of a runoff.
Sobyanin, once President Vladimir Putin's chief of staff, told supporters the election had been transparent.
In late 2011, Moscow was the scene of the biggest anti-government protests since Soviet times after a general election marred by allegations of ballot-rigging.
Mayoral elections were abolished in Moscow in 2004 but reinstated as a concession to prodemocracy campaigners.
In 2010, Yuri Luzhkov, who had governed the city for almost two decades, was fired and then-President Dmitriy Medvedev appointed Sobyanin for mayor.
TikTok has removed 34 accounts linked to what it described as coordinated inauthentic activity connected to Bulgaria’s upcoming parliamentary elections
A mayor in northwestern Bulgaria is under scrutiny after allegedly distributing social benefits alongside a political party’s election materials
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A new survey by the “Sova Harris” agency indicates that six political formations would enter the next Bulgarian National Assembly, based on data collected between April 2 and 6 among 800 respondents through standardized face-to-face interviews
Bulgaria is bracing for an increase in disinformation activity in the run-up to the parliamentary elections on April 19, with authorities warning of coordinated attempts to influence voters and destabilize public trust
President Iliana Yotova convened a meeting of institutions responsible for the conduct of the early parliamentary elections on April 19, with a focus on assessing preparedness and ensuring that every vote is properly safeguarded
NEW POLL: HUNGARIANS UNITED ON NEED FOR A ‘DIFFERENT’ RELATIONSHIP WITH THE EU, BUT DIVERGENCES REMAIN ON UKRAINE
The Kremlin has announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered an “Easter ceasefire” in the war in Ukraine, declaring a temporary halt in hostilities lasting around 36 hours
A group of Members of the European Parliament has raised concerns over the potential leakage of confidential EU information to Russia, urging stronger safeguards within the European Parliament
Moldovan President Maia Sandu has formally enacted legislation withdrawing the country from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), marking a decisive step in Chisinau’s gradual disengagement from Russian-led structures
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has carried out a series of coordinated investigative actions across several countries, including Bulgaria and Romania, as part of a probe into suspected large-scale fraud involving EU funds
A fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran has coincided with escalating tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has moved to tighten control over one of the world’s most critical maritime routes
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