Clean sweep: Russian woman beats pro-Putin boss in council election

A woman who cleans a local government building in rural Russia has been voted into office after she only stood to get her boss re-elected.

Marina Udgodskaya won after taking 62 per cent of the vote, easily beating Nikolai Loktev, an ally and supporter of the pro-Kremlin United Russia Party.

She only stood for election because no one in the village of Povalikhino, Kostroma - some 525 kilometres east of Moscow - had challenged the former policeman.

Mr Loktev reportedly persuaded Ms Udgodskaya to register as a “rival” to give the impression of a real contest.

However, his plan backfired when the cleaner easily beat him as he claimed just 34 per cent of the vote.

Speaking to the BBC, a member of the local electoral commission in Povalikhino said: “Nikolai Loktev thought no one would vote for her and he would stay in the job. But the people had had enough and they came out and chose Marina Udgodskaya.

She added: “He was amazed and she was flabbergasted!”

Ms Udgodskaya is intending to keep a low profile before her inauguration later this week after the victory made national headlines.

In an interview with the news channel Podyom after the election, she said: “I didn't think that they would vote for me… I didn't do anything at all!”

She confessed: “I didn’t nominate myself. Nikolai Loktev asked me. There was simply no other person and I was a bogus candidate.”

She explained: “I wanted to help him.”

The tactic of “technical” or “stooge” candidates is not uncommon in Russia.

Ms Udgodskaya’s village is the largest of 30 that will now fall under her jurisdiction.

In an interview with the BBC, Mr Loktev said: “I’ve done everything necessary in the job; there are no problems in the village.”

He added: “Clearly the people wanted change.”

Some suggest her victory was a result of anti-Kremlin sentiment and protest against the United Russia Party who are currently not performing well in polls.

The party won just 32 per cent of the vote for the regional parliament in Kostroma.

Ms Udgodskaya’s win may be evidence of the smart voting strategy that was being pushed by opposition leader Alexei Navalny who encouraged the backing of candidates most likely to defeat United Russia.

She has since become an unexpected hero for anti-Putin politicians in Russia.

Opposition politician Dmitry Gudkov posted on Facebook that voters are now willing to back anyone except candidates obedient to the Kremlin.

He said: “People are ready to vote for anything else. It doesn’t matter who you are by profession, or what experience you have.”

Gudkov told Ms Udgodskaya: “I suppose if you tried the presidential elections, you would win there too. Because 20 years of dictatorship brought one common wish – for change.”

He concluded: “And you, Marina, would not use Novichok, for sure. And this is the great advantage.”

The newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported that Ms Udgodskaya is unable to refuse the mandate, as herself and the Pensioners Party who backed her would have to pay for an entire election to be re-run.

Meanwhile, until she begins her new role, Ms Udgodskaya continues to clean the administration building that she will soon run while the man she beat packs up his belongings.