Russians vote in presidential elections on March 4, and few doubt the return of prime minister Vladimir Putin to the job he last held in 2008. The main question is whether Putin will win outright in the first round or in a run-off.
But there is another intruiging element to the contest – the rise in popularity of Mikhail Prokhorov, billionaire steel tycoon. Stooge or principled industrialist? As the FT’s Catherine Belton reports from her time with him on the road, beyondbrics brings you some of the pictures and video from his campaign.
This is Prokhorov’s main pitch from his website. Title: I want to work for you.
In this video (in Russian) you get more of a sense of Prokhorov’s political style.
And here are some pictures from the campaign trail.
A campaign rally in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, February 8
Prokhorov speaks to journalists after his meeting with Swiss diplomat Heidi Tagliavini, the head of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission in Moscow
And a little basketball training for the owner of the New York Nets
Stefan Wagstyl
Josh Noble
Rob Minto
Pan Kwan Yuk
Jonathan Wheatley
Heba Saleh