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Maybe the most surprising thing about this is how commonplace it is for multiple candidates to share the same name. From the article: > “Double” candidates reg
by aazaa 5y ago
Maybe the most surprising thing about this is how commonplace it is for multiple candidates to share the same name. From the article:
> “Double” candidates regularly pop up during Russia’s election cycles, which can be surprisingly cut-throat despite the expectation that the ruling United Russia party will maintain a majority in the Duma. The rising tide of opposition to United Russia and growing support for the Communist KPRF have apparently spooked the government and nominating doppelgängers can siphon off precious votes in close contests.
- PeterisP 5y agoThat's not an accidental match of the names or finding "doppelgangers" somewhere, it's intentionally making doppelgangers - these "spoiler" candidates literally changed their name before the elections, one of them was born as Viktor Bykov and the other was Alexei Shmelev. The only thing they can't legally change is the patronymic, which a key part of the name in Russia and differentiates the names of these three candidates.
- Joker_vD 5y agoYou absolutely can change patronymics, that's how lot's of Mikhailovich's and Arkadievich's became Moishevich's and Abramovich's in the 90ies after the collapse of the USSR.
- PeterisP 5y agoThat's interesting - wouldn't that be because the actual fathers changed their names in those cases back to the non-Russianized versions (Moishe/Mikhail) when e.g. emigrating to Israel when that ceased to be forbidden? But in any case, those particular candidates had their names and surnames changed but for whatever reason their patronymics were left intact.
- aazaa 5y agoAnd what I'm saying is that the change of appearance in this particular case is less surprising than the fact that double or triple name candidates on a ballot "regularly" occur.