Khakassia acting governor drops out of runoff election, amid rumors that the Kremlin worried he would cheat

Citing health problems, acting Khakassia Governor Viktor Zimin dropped out of a runoff race scheduled for this Sunday. Sources told the magazine RBC that he made the announcement after getting a phone call from someone in the Putin administration.

The Kremlin allegedly worried that Zimin would try to falsify the election, knowing that he’ll likely be trounced by his challenger from the Communist Party, Valentin Konovalov, who won 44.8 percent against Zimin’s 32.4 percent in the first round of voting. According to election law, the runoff vote is now postponed another two weeks, giving the third-place candidate a chance to compete against Konovalov in the next election.

Earlier in September, sources close to the Kremlin told the newspaper Vedomosti that the situation in Khakassia has become “unmanageable,” complaining that the regional government has run out of money to pay civil servant salaries and needed outside intervention. “Let anyone take over, so long as it’s not him,” a source said, referring to Viktor Zimin.