>
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday visited the office of the country’s Central Elections Commission (CEC) to submit his application for registration as an independent candidate in the 2018 presidential election.
The application is understood to include an application for registration of an initiative group of supporters, a statement of consent to running for President, confirmations of biographical data as well as income and property ownership data.
Over 600 Russian politicians, activists, and celebrities have founded an initiative group backing Putin’s independent candidacy for a new term.
The group was formed with the help of the parliamentary majority party United Russia, the centrist public movement All-Russian Popular Front and the Russian Public Chamber.
The group also included top representatives from several political parties such as the center-left parliamentary opposition party Fair Russia, the Green Party and the nationalist party Motherland, that decided to back Putin’s candidacy.
Putin announced his intention to seek another presidential term in 2018 on December 6 and on December 14 he said that he would run as an independent with the support of various political parties and ordinary citizens.
READ: Putin announces bid to run for 4th term as President of Russia
This means that the incumbent if accepted as a candidate, will have to collect and present to the CEC signatures of 300,000 of his supporters.
This has to be done no later than 45 days before the elections set for March 18, 2018.