A Microsoft font got a Communist candidate thrown off Russia’s ballot. An appeals court just put him back on it.
The Fourth Appeals Court in Nizhny Novgorod has overturned a Samara Regional Court ruling that removed Mikhail Matveyev, a Communist Party (KPRF) candidate and sitting State Duma deputy, from the ballot in Russia’s parliamentary elections.
The prosecutor’s office also backed overturning the Samara court’s ruling.
As a result, Matveyev remains a registered candidate, the KPRF said.
Matveyev is considered one of the KPRF’s strongest single-mandate candidates.
On August 14, the Samara Regional Court revoked his registration as a candidate in elections to the State Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament, citing copyright violations involving a Microsoft font and old photos on his website. The lawsuit was filed by Anna Sarantseva, a Party of Pensioners candidate running against Matveyev in the same single-mandate district.
Copyright claims have been used during the current campaign to knock opposition candidates off the ballot, including candidates from parties other than the KPRF. In one such case, Russia’s Supreme Court revoked the registration of the liberal Yabloko party’s federal list on August 12 in response to a lawsuit filed by the Rodina party.
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