Widow of ‘murdered’ Alexei Navalny tells Russians to organize anti-Putin flash mob protests to overload polling stations at noon on election day

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Alexei Navalny, today called on Russians to stage an election day protest against President Vladimir Putin by forming long lines outside polling stations.

Navalnaya has vowed to continue her husband’s work and opposition to the Kremlin after his death last month in a prison colony in the Arctic.

In a video on YouTube, Navalnaya supported an initiative to try to overload polling stations in this month’s national elections, in which Putin will secure a new six-year term as president.

‘We have to go to the polling station on one day at a time: March 17 at noon. What to do now? You can choose. You can vote for any candidate except Putin. You can spoil your ballot. You can write ‘Navalny’ in big letters,” Navalnaya said in the video.

She called the March 15-17 vote a “sham” and said it was clear that Putin would “deliver whatever result he wanted.”

Although Russia appears somewhat autocratic, it is still officially a democracy and Putin must be voted back in to keep his place in office

Supporters of the initiative hope it will be a legal and safe way for Russians to protest against the Kremlin.

Street rallies and anti-government demonstrations are effectively illegal in Russia, and organizers and participants can be sentenced to years in prison.

Navalny had also backed the proposal – which organizers have dubbed “afternoon against Putin” – in one of his last posts from prison before he died.

Putin has been president of Russia almost continuously since 2000. The only time he wasn’t was between 2008 and 2012, when he was premier of the province.

He is the longest serving Soviet leader since Joseph Stalin.

Although Russia appears somewhat autocratic, it is still officially a democracy and Putin must be voted out to keep his place in office.

However, this is very likely as Putin is believed to have assassinated the opposition leader, which would have been a challenge.

The Kremlin denies that Navalny had any significant support within Russia and says Russian society is united behind Putin.

Electoral authorities have barred genuine opposition candidates from the vote, and Putin’s most outspoken critics are dead, in prison or exiled.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that Moscow “will no longer tolerate criticism of our democracy” as Western governments condemn the upcoming elections as neither free nor fair.

“We will hold the kind of elections that our people need,” he told reporters.

If Putin is re-elected, he will remain in power for six years.

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Not only mourners gathered at Navalny’s funeral, but also anti-regime protesters

Navalnaya said on Wednesday she had drawn hope from thousands who had visited Navalny’s grave with flowers and tributes since his funeral last Friday.

She called them the “bravest, most honest people in our country.” She said the show of support proved that there was significant opposition to the Kremlin in Russia.

It is hoped that flooding polling stations with queues to prevent Putin supporters from casting their votes will lead to a different election outcome – or at least prove an issue for the Kremlin.

Navalnaya said on Wednesday she had drawn hope from thousands who had visited Navalny’s grave with flowers and tributes since his funeral last Friday.

Calling them the “bravest, most honest people of our country,” she said the show of support proved there was significant opposition to the Kremlin in Russia.

“There are many of us and we are strong,” she said.

Navalny had also backed the proposal – which organizers have dubbed “afternoon against Putin” – in one of his last posts from prison before he died. Here is a painting in memory of the man

Putin has been president of Russia almost continuously since 2000. The only time he wasn’t was between 2008 and 2012, when he was premier of the province.

The Kremlin had threatened Navalny’s mourners with arrest under Moscow’s strict anti-protest laws.

Hundreds have been arrested as they laid flowers and signs at makeshift memorials to the opposition leader across Russia.

Police in Moscow have since arrested at least five people who attended Navalny’s funeral or visited his grave, according to rights group OVD-Info.