Protests in Moscow

More than 1,000 people were arrested during protests in Moscow on July 28. Protesters gathered in response to more than 30 opposition candidates having being left off of the ballot for a vote scheduled for Sept. 8. Some of those candidates were also arrested before the protest.

An approved protest against the ballot, held on July 21, attracted at least 20,000 people, resulting in dozens of arrests. Officials say that the July 28 protest was unapproved and contained about 3,500 people.

A second unauthorized protest in Moscow, attracting at least 1,500 people, was held on Aug. 3. At that protest, at least 600 people were arrested.

A new law required candidates to collect 5,000 signatures to be put on the ballot. However, that law also stated that all signatories would be put in a government database, which free-election advocates said would allow the Russian government to see which citizens were supporting opposition candidates.