Boris Nemtsov 2008 presidential campaign

In the preceding 2007 Russian legislative election Nemtsov's party, the Union of Right Forces, had failed to meet the prerequisite 7% of the vote necessary to earn representation in the State Duma.{{cite web |last1=Nichol |first1=Jim |title=Russia's December 2007 Legislative Election: Outcome and Implications |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RS22770.pdf |publisher=CRS |accessdate=10 June 2019 |date=10 December 2007}} Nemtsov believed that the only way for the opposition to have a chance at defeating the establishment in the presidential election was for it to ultimately unite around a single candidate.{{cite web |title=Russia: Nemtsov Urges Opposition To Back Single Candidate |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1077074.html |publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |accessdate=9 June 2019 |date=11 June 2007}} He had previously unsuccessfully attempted to coalesce the opposition into a coalition during the preceding 2007 Russian legislative election. It was rumored that his Union of Right Forces might ultimately seek a coalition with Mikhail Kasyanov's Russian People's Democratic Union for the presidential election.{{cite web |title=Newsline - December 10, 2007 |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1144010.html |publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |accessdate=9 June 2019 |date=10 December 2007}} In addition, the Union of Right Forces also sought to see the opposition coalesce behind a single candidate for the presidential election.{{cite web |title=В СПС призывают после парламентских выборов договориться о едином кандидате в президенты РФ от оппозиции |url=http://www.nemtsov.ru/?id=705326 |website=Nemtsov.ru |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205184327/http://www.nemtsov.ru/?id=705326 |archivedate=5 December 2007 |access-date=9 June 2019 |url-status=live }}

At a party meeting on 23 November 2007, the Union of Right Forces declared that Nemtsov would be their nominee.{{cite web |title=Russian Opposition Party Picks Nemtsov For Presidency |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1079189.html |publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |accessdate=12 June 2019 |date=24 November 2007}}{{cite web |title=The leader of the Union of Right Forces |url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-leader-of-the-union-of-right-forces-party-boris-nemtsov-news-photo/78073446 |publisher=Getty Images |accessdate=12 June 2019}}

In late November Nemtsov was detained at a rally protesting the legislative elections as having been unfair.{{cite web |title=Exit, Russian Democracy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/27/opinion/27tue2.html |work=New York Times |accessdate=12 June 2019 |date=27 November 2007}}

Nemtsov was formally nominated by the Union of Right Forces on 18 December 2007.[http://www.kyivpost.com/bn/28019/ Kyiv Post. Russian opposition party SPS nominates Nemtsov as presidential candidate] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071220181930/http://www.kyivpost.com/bn/28019/|date=December 20, 2007}}

Russian television news media, both regional and national, under the influence of the Kremlin, attacked Nemtsov.{{cite web |last1=Levy |first1=Clifford J. |title=Putin's Iron Grip on Russia Suffocates Opponents |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/world/europe/24putin.html |work=New York Times |accessdate=9 June 2019 |date=24 February 2008}}

On 26 December 2007, Nemtsov withdrew his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election, saying that he did not want to draw votes away from the other candidate of the "democratic opposition", Mikhail Kasyanov.[https://web.archive.org/web/20070621012400/http://newsfromrussia.com/news/russia/26-12-2007/103181-nemtsov_election_president-0 "Nemtsov no longer presidential candidate"], Pravda.ru, 26 December 2007. Nemtsov also had declared that he would no longer run, in part, due to his belief that the government had predetermined the election's winner.{{cite web |title=Russia's March 2008 Presidential Election: Outcome and Implications |url=https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RS22831.html |publisher=CSR |accessdate=9 June 2019 |date=13 March 2008}}

{{reflist}}

{{Candidates in the Russian presidential election, 2008}}

Nemtsov, Boris

Category:Union of Right Forces