Alexei Navalny: Who was Putin’s fiercest critic and could Yulia Navalnaya now lead the Russian opposition?

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Alexei Navalny’s death was confirmed by his family on Friday 16th February. Details surrounding the sudden death of the face of Russian opposition have been scarce and enveloped in suspicion. 

Initially, his own mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, was denied entry to the local mortuary to identify his body. After she was granted access and had confirmed it was indeed Navalny, she was then told that his body had to be held for two weeks for chemical analysis - some have speculated this could be to ensure the corpse is free from traces of poison when released. Despite the suspicion surrounding his death, Russian authorities continue to repeat that he simply fell ill after a walk, testifying that he was a victim of “sudden death syndrome”. 

To what extent these suspicions are true we may never know, but it is clear that Alexei Navalny was the most famous contemporary figure in Russian opposition to Vladimir Putin. It is therefore important to assess the implications of his death for the future of Russian politics. To do this, we must examine his political career from the beginning.

Alexei Navalny 

Having graduated from the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia in 1998 with a law degree, Navalny made his political debut as a fervent anti-corruption campaigner. He began his own blog shedding light on the rampant corruption at state level in Russia and repeatedly asserted that Putin’s political circle was full of “crooks” and “theives”. His use of social media as a mechanism to educate young Russians on the reality of Russian political structures ensured he rapidly gained popularity and support. Navalny then later established his own Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which investigates such corruption claims in greater detail. 

It wasn’t until 2011, however, that Navalny began to actively take to the streets and lead anti-Putin protests. This open defiance not only ensured that he would be in and out of jail for the next few years, but also that he would become an internationally recognised figurehead for anti-Putin, pro-democracy forces in Russian politics and beyond. 

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Navalny was then fully brought into the international spotlight in 2020, when he was poisoned by Russian secret service officials and nearly lost his life. Once recovered, he chose to return to his homeland, despite knowing that imminent arrest awaited him upon his arrival. He was found guilty of violating the terms of a 2014 suspended sentence for fraud, resulting in a new sentence of 19 years in prison. 

Although Navalny himself was cut off from political life during his last years, his anti-corruption team and supporters within the general public continued his work. The former, for example, developed a “smart voting” app to help citizens vote strategically in elections, while the latter organised a series of mass protests across Russia calling for the release of political prisoners and a healthy Russian democracy. 

It should be recognised that, although he is frequently hailed as a pro-democracy hero, Navalny’s own political convictions have sparked controversy in the past. For example, he was accused of xenophobia when he compared immigrants to cockroaches. Also, although he has been outwardly critical of the War in Ukraine since 2022, he was previously recorded stating that Crimea “de facto belongs to Russia”. His early association with far right political parties has also rung alarm bells. 

Nevertheless, despite his controversies, Navalny had become a symbol of hope for political change in Russia. This was apparent in both the national and international mourning surrounding Navalny’s passing. It is hoped by many that Navalny’s memory will continue to inspire, albeit as the name of a martyr rather than an active politician. In spite of this, his sudden death has left many to wonder whether Russia’s pro-democracy movement will survive without its crucial leader. 

Yulia Navalnaya

Shortly after the announcement of her husband's death, Yulia Navalnaya posted a video statement vowing to continue the fight to realise Navalny’s “beautiful Russia of the future”. Yulia, Navalny’s widow, thus appears to have assumed responsibility as leader of the Russian opposition.

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Although Navalnaya has a background in economics and banking, until recently she has been viewed mainly as a devoted wife, appearing nearly constantly at her husband's side during his political trials and tribulations. In spite of this supportive image, she must not be reduced purely to a silent and obedient housewife. She has been outspoken regarding her own convictions and heavily involved in Navalny’s campaigns, including taking vital action to save Navalny’s life after his first poisoning. With his death however, she has stepped into the political spotlight as an independent figure, vowing to continue her husband's legacy so that his “unthinkable” death won’t have been in vain. 

Navalnaya’s decision to take on a more prominent role within the democratic movement in Russia after the death of her partner bares resemblance to the political trajectories of figures like Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya and Evgenia Kara-Murza. Tsikhanouskaya was previously a teacher and stay-at-home mother but transformed into a pro-democracy icon after the arrest and sentencing of her husband, Sergei Tikhanovsky, who was an outspoken critic of Alexander Lukashenko and announced he would run for the presidential election in 2020.. Similarly, Kara-Murza’s husband, the political activist Vladimir Kara-Murza, has been poisoned twice and arrested, yet she continues his work by campaigning for tighter sanctions on Putin's people and calling for his release.  

It is uncertain whether we will see Navalnaya follow a similar path to Tsikhanouskaya and Kara-Murza. Although she has been outspoken by directly accusing Putin of killing Navalny, morale among her supporters is low. As Putin’s state led repression continues, more and more activists and critics end up behind bars. With the upcoming Russian elections next month, for instance, Putin has made sure he has no serious opposition: Alexei Navalny is dead, Igor Girkin is in jail and Boris Nadezhin has been prevented from running. 

Navalnaya faces quite the challenge ahead of her. Not only is there more of a threat to her personal safety, but she will also have to tackle the difficult task of re-engaging the low morale, Russian pro-democracy movement. In spite of this, the fight her husband died for will continue, as long as people like Navalnaya remain determined to lead it.

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