Alexei Navalny

Alexei Anatolyevich Navalny was a Russian opposition leader, anti‑corruption activist, and prominent blogger whose career spanned more than two decades, beginning in the early 2000s when he entered the Yabloko party and later founded the Anti‑Corruption Foundation (FBK) in 2011. He rose to national prominence by publishing detailed investigations into the wealth of high‑ranking officials, famously labeling United Russia a “party of crooks and thieves,” a phrase that resonated widely across Russian social media. Navalny’s political activities included a 2013 mayoral run in Moscow where he secured 27 % of the vote, and a thwarted 2018 presidential campaign blocked by repeated legal bans and suspended sentences. Throughout his career, he faced numerous politically motivated criminal cases, including the Kirovles embezzlement trial and the Yves Rocher fraud case, both of which resulted in suspended sentences that were later converted to prison terms. In August 2020, Navalny survived a near‑fatal poisoning with a Novichok nerve agent, an attack that attracted international condemnation and led to his evacuation to Berlin for treatment. After returning to Russia in January 2021, he was immediately detained for alleged parole violations, sparking massive protests and leading to a series of additional convictions that ultimately sentenced him to over 19 years in prison. Despite incarceration, Navalny continued to influence opposition strategy through initiatives like the “Smart Voting” platform, which aimed to consolidate anti‑Kremlin votes. His death in February 2024 while imprisoned sparked worldwide protests and intensified scrutiny of the Russian justice system, cementing his legacy as a symbol of resistance against authoritarian rule.