Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 8, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
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Golos, Russia's independent election watchdog, closes after co-chair Grigory Melkonyants is jailed, citing increased legal risks.
LONDON (Reuters) -Russia's only independent election watchdog said on Tuesday it was closing down after a court jailed its co-chairman for five years in May after finding him guilty of working with an "undesirable organisation".
Golos, which means both "voice" and "vote" in Russian, first angered the authorities by publicising evidence of what it said was fraud in a 2011 parliamentary election that led to opposition protests. It also sharply criticised the conduct of presidential elections in 2012 and 2024.
The authorities rejected those accusations of fraud and later designated Golos as a "foreign agent," a negative and burdensome designation with Soviet-era connotations of espionage.
Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of the Golos movement, was sentenced to five years in a penal colony in May after being found guilty of working with an "undesirable organisation". He denied wrongdoing.
Golos said on Tuesday that the jailing of Melkonyants - which it said was aimed at muzzling it - and the authorities' hostility to its activities had left it with no option but to close down even though it believed it had been providing a valuable non-partisan service to Russia.
"This court decision leaves us no choice as it puts not only all participants of Golos at risk of criminal prosecution, but even those people who simply applied for counselling and legal assistance," the group said in a statement.
"Justice, alas, does not always win - it must be fought for. And there is always a risk of losing. This time it happened like this."
(Reporting by Andrew OsbornEditing by Guy Faulconbridge)
Golos announced its closure due to the jailing of its co-chairman Grigory Melkonyants, which they claimed was aimed at silencing the organization. The authorities' hostility left them with no choice.
Grigory Melkonyants was sentenced to five years in a penal colony after being found guilty of collaborating with an 'undesirable organization', a charge he denied.
The designation of 'foreign agent' for Golos is a burdensome label that carries negative connotations, reminiscent of Soviet-era accusations of espionage.
The court decision puts all participants of Golos at risk of criminal prosecution, including individuals who sought counseling and legal assistance from the organization.
Golos remarked that justice does not always prevail and must be fought for, indicating that there is always a risk of losing, as exemplified by their current situation.
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