2026 Mordovian head election
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18–20 September 2026
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The 2026 Republic of Mordovia head election will take place on 18–20 September 2026, on common election day, to elect the Head of the Republic of Mordovia, coinciding with the 2026 Mordovian legislative election and the 2026 Russian legislative election. Incumbent Head Artyom Zdunov is running for a second term in office.
Background
In November 2020 Vladimir Volkov, who served as Head of the Republic of Mordovia since 2012, announced resignation in the middle of his second term.[1] Reasons cited for Volkov's early resignations were his apathetic style of governance, rising state debt, health issues and public fatigue as Volkov has been a fixture in regional politics, previously serving as Prime Minister of Mordovia in 1995–2012.[2] President of Russia Vladimir Putin appointed Prime Minister of Dagestan Artyom Zdunov, an ethnic Erzya, acting Head of the Republic of Mordovia following Volkov's resignation.[3] Zdunov faced little opposition in a region long considered an "electoral sultanate" for United Russia and easily won an election for a full term in 2021 with 78.21% of the vote, while the party simultaneously won 42 seats (out of 48) in the State Assembly of the Republic of Mordovia.[4][5]
Zdunov's term in office was rather uneventful if somewhat successful with him being mostly credited for improving the republic's chronically indebted budget, fighting corruption in the regional government and solving demographic problems.[6][7] Major shifts occurred in the regional elite as Zdunov largely replaced associates close to former head Nikolay Merkushkin, who effectively controlled politics and economy of Mordovia since 1995, with officials from Tatarstan and Dagestan, where Zdunov had built his administrative career.[8][9]
On May 4, 2026, Zdunov met with President Putin and asked his endorsement for the upcoming head election, which Putin agreed to.[10]
Candidates
In Mordovia candidates for Head of the Republic of Mordovia can be nominated only by registered political parties. Candidate for Head of the Republic of Mordovia should be a Russian citizen and at least 30 years old. Candidates for Head of the Republic of Mordovia should not have a foreign citizenship or residence permit. Each candidate in order to be registered is required to collect at least 7% of signatures of municipal deputies and heads of municipalities.[11] Also head candidates present 3 candidacies to the Federation Council and election winner later appoints one of the presented candidates.
Declared
| Candidate name, political party |
Occupation | Status | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aleksandr Aleksandrov Communist Party |
Member of Saransk Council of Deputies (2021–present) Aide to State Duma member Irina Filatova |
Registered | [12] | ||
| Timur Geraskin A Just Russia |
Member of State Assembly of the Republic of Mordovia (2021–present) 2017 head candidate |
Registered | [13] | ||
| Dmitry Masserov The Greens |
Mordovian State University department of ecology and natural resources head | Registered | [14] | ||
| Vladislav Tulayev New People |
Construction businessman | Registered | [15] | ||
| Yevgeny Tyurin Liberal Democratic Party |
Deputy Chairman of the State Assembly of the Republic of Mordovia (2021–present) Member of the State Assembly (2016–present) 2017 and 2021 head candidate |
Registered | [16] | ||
| Artyom Zdunov United Russia |
 |
Incumbent Head of the Republic of Mordovia (2020–present) | Registered | [17][10] [18] | |
Candidates for Federation Council
Incumbent Senator Sergey Kislyak (Independent) was not renominated.
| Gubernatorial candidate, political party |
Candidates for Federation Council | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artyom Zdunov United Russia |
* Sergey Ageyev, Member of State Assembly of the Republic of Mordovia (2021–present), glass manufacturing executive * Anatoly Gulin, former Chief Federal Inspector for Mordovia (2023–2026) * Andrey Kelin, former Ambassador of Russia to the United Kingdom (2019–2026) |
Registered | |
Finances
All sums are in rubles.
| Financial Report | Source | Aleksandrov | Geraskin | Masserov | Tulayev | Tyurin | Zdunov |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | [19] | 50,000 | 311,100 | 50,000 | 47,000 | 49,300 | 20,000,000 |
| Final | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
Results
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aleksandr Aleksandrov | Communist Party | ||||
| Timur Geraskin | A Just Russia | ||||
| Dmitry Masserov | The Greens | ||||
| Vladislav Tulayev | New People | ||||
| Yevgeny Tyurin | Liberal Democratic Party | ||||
| Artyom Zdunov (incumbent) | United Russia | ||||
| Valid votes | |||||
| Blank ballots | |||||
| Total | 100.00 | ||||
| Turnout | |||||
| Registered voters | 100.00 | ||||
| Source: | |||||
See also
References
- ↑ "Глава Мордовии обратился к президенту РФ с просьбой об отставке". tass.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Новая гвардия: отставка главы Мордовии не стала неожиданностью". iz.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Премьер Дагестана возглавил Мордовию". rbc.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Здунов победил на выборах главы Мордовии". ria.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ ""Единая Россия" победила на выборах в госсобрание Мордовии". ria.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Как Здунов рулит Мордовией". versia.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Путин отметил успех Мордовии в решении демографических проблем". ria.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Битва за активы: как и почему «варяги» Здунова заканчивают вытеснение влиятельных мордовских кланов". regcomment.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Кадровые проблемы Здунова и ослабление поддержки в Саранске: почему «варяги» покидают систему власти в Мордовии". regcomment.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- 1 2 "Путин поддержал переизбрание Здунова на пост главы Мордовии". kommersant.ru. Retrieved 2026-05-05.
- ↑ "Закон Республики Мордовия от 13 июня 2012 года N 42-З "О выборах Главы Республики Мордовия" (с изменениями на 7 ноября 2025 года)". docs.cntd.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Александров Александр Сергеевич". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
- ↑ "Гераськин Тимур Владимирович". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-15.
- ↑ "Массеров Дмитрий Александрович". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
- ↑ "Тулаев Владислав Геннадьевич". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-15.
- ↑ "Тюрин Евгений Павлович". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-04.
- ↑ "В Мордовию — по грибы". kommersant.ru. Retrieved 2026-03-14.
- ↑ "Здунов Артём Алексеевич". izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-07-15.
- ↑ "Первый финансовый отчет". mordov.izbirkom.ru. Retrieved 2026-08-07.
