Green Alternative (Russia)
Green Alternative is a green political party in Russia. It was founded in December 2019 as a social movement by its chairman Ruslan Khvostov. It held its founding party congress in March 2020 and was officially registered as a political party with the Ministry of Justice the following month. The party has yet to win a seat in the national State Duma, but it won two seats in the 2020 regional elections: one in the Komi Republic and another in the Chelyabinsk Oblast.
History
Green Alternative was created as a social movement in December 2019 by environmental activist and former Mestnye member Ruslan Khvostov. Documents for its registration as a political party were submitted to the Ministry of Justice in February 2020. The founding party congress of Green Alternative was subsequently held on 10 March 2020, and Khvostov was elected party leader with almost 80% of the vote. The artist was also elected as the "informal leader" of the party. On 7 April 2020, the party was officially registered by the Ministry of Justice and in May it received the right to participate in elections.The party contest the 2020 regional elections, receiving 10% of the vote in the Komi Republic and 5.4% in the Chelyabinsk Oblast, and winning a seat in both federal subjects' parliaments. Because the party won seats in regional parliaments, it gained the right to participate in federal parliamentary elections without collecting signatures.
In the 2021 legislative elections, Green Alternative came twelfth, winning 0.64% of the popular vote and no seats.