The Woman Plotting to End Vladimir Putin's Reign

Yekaterina Duntsova, a former TV journalist who has announced her intention to run in Russia's 2024 presidential elections, says she wants to make Russia democratic and peaceful.

Duntsova, a 40-year-old independent candidate from a small town in the Tver region in western Russia, has no prior experience in Russia's politics, but said in an announcement on her Telegram channel that she wants to run because "I love our country."

"I want Russia to be a thriving democratic and peaceful state. But right now our country is moving in a completely different direction," Duntsova said. "I understand that many right now want to wait it out… but we need to act… Let's at least try! Let's try to win this 'election'!"

She has advocated for an end to the war in Ukraine, and is aiming to put bring to a conclusion the rule of Russian President Vladimir Putin, 71, who has been in power since 2000.

Putin announced earlier this month that he will be running for re-election in 2024. Following constitutional changes orchestrated by the Russian leader prior to the war in Ukraine, he may remain in power until 2036. If re-elected, it would be Putin's fifth term as Russian president.

The country's 2024 election is due to be held on March 17.

Newsweek has contacted Russia's Foreign Ministry via email for comment.

Duntsova, if accepted as an independent candidate, would be required to gather 300,000 signatures of support from at least 40 regions across Russia.

"For at least the last ten years, the country has been moving in the wrong direction: the course has been set not for development, but for self-destruction," she wrote on her campaign page.

"Every day the life of ordinary Russians becomes more and more difficult. Citizens cannot freely express their opinions if they do not coincide with the position of the authorities," Duntsova said. "The number of political prisoners is growing, hundreds of thousands of people have been driven out of the country. Local self-government has been virtually destroyed, and in a huge state everything is decided by one person."

Russia needs "urgent changes," she said. "A cessation of hostilities, democratic reforms, the release of political prisoners. We have to abolish all inhumane laws and restore relations with the outside world. Change budget priorities: spend money on improving the lives of citizens, and not on new tanks."

Duntsova told the Associated Press in an interview published on December 11 that she is afraid of being targeted by the Kremlin, given Russia's history of clamping down on opposition activists and protesters, but said it is necessary to "present an alternative" to Putin.

"I've spoken with many activists and local lawmakers about the upcoming election, about what's in store for us. Because there was no obvious candidate … who would stand for similar values [to ours]," she said.

"At some point, the idea came up … that it would be interesting if it were a woman [to run against Putin], because that would really be something different. Rigidity and harshness against softness, kindness, peace," Duntsova added.

In August, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as questioning the democratic credentials of Russia's presidential elections and forecasting a crushing victory for Putin next year.

"Our presidential election is not really democracy; it is costly bureaucracy," Peskov told The New York Times in an article published on August 6. "Mr. Putin will be reelected next year with more than 90 percent of the vote."

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