Moskvitina became a candidate for the State Duma despite protests from feminists.
The Central Electoral Commission officially registered Natalia Moskvitina, head of the Women for Life Foundation, as a candidate for the State Duma. However, Russian feminists had previously actively demanded that she be disqualified from the election due to her radical anti-abortion initiatives.
Registration of the candidacy and Moskvitina's reaction
Natalia Moskvitina announced the receipt of her official candidate ID on her Telegram channel. In her message, she thanked her supporters for their support during the nomination process.
This stage would be impossible without your support. I thank everyone who cared, who voted, who prayed. This is, of course, only the beginning of a long journey.
The head of a pro-life foundation is running for election on the Vologda Oblast party list. However, the registration process was preceded by large-scale public protests from women's organizations.
The Alliance of Women's Initiatives campaign against the candidate
Meanwhile, Russian feminists demanded that Moskvitina's registration be blocked due to her stance on abortion. In particular, back in June, the Alliance of Women's Initiatives launched a special campaign against Natalia Moskvitina, convinced that her legislative ideas would lead to open discrimination against women.
Moskvitina is known for her systematic anti-abortion initiatives: she publicly supported the introduction of fines for "inducing abortion" and has led the pro-life movement "Women for Life" for many years. Furthermore, the activist has repeatedly advocated for women to have more children, rather than doing so "out of greed." At the same time, she personally visited medical clinics and tried to dissuade patients from undergoing abortion procedures.
Petition against registrations and the activists' position
As a result, Russian women's activists prepared a collective appeal demanding that her candidacy be withdrawn from the elections.
Natalia Moskvitina does not represent the interests of Russian women—mothers of many children, single parents, working women, young girls, and those who have experienced violence.
Consequently, the petition published by activists against Moskvitina's candidacy quickly garnered nearly 40 signatures. However, despite such widespread discontent, the Central Election Commission decided to register the foundation's head as an official candidate.
