俄罗斯电视节目主持人宣布竞选总统

Ksenia Sobchak, a Russian television presenter and socialite, said she will run for president next year in an ostensible challenge to Vladimir Putin that is likely to split the opposition.

俄罗斯电视节目主持人和社会名流克谢尼娅•索布恰克(Ksenia Sobchak)表示，她将在明年竞选总统，这种对弗拉基米尔•普京(Vladimir Putin)表面上的挑战可能分化反对派。

In a letter published in Vedomosti newspaper on Wednesday, Ms Sobchak, who became famous as the host of the Russian equivalent of reality TV show Big Brother, said she wanted Russia’s opposition to use her campaign as a way to vote “against everyone”.

索布恰克在周三发表在《Vedomosti》报上的一封信中表示，她希望俄罗斯反对派将其竞选作为投票“反对所有人”的方式。索布恰克因主持俄罗斯版的《老大哥》(Big Brother)真人秀节目而成名。

“You want to speak your mind, but your candidate hasn’t been admitted to the elections? You don’t have a candidate? Tick Sobchak. You’re not picking her to be the president. You’re just using a legal and peaceful way to say, ‘Enough! I’ve had it!’” she wrote.

她写道：“你想说出你的想法，但你心目中的候选人没有获得参选资格?你还没有青睐的候选人?勾选索布恰克吧。你不是选她当总统，你只是用一种合法而和平的方式说，‘够了!我已经受够了!’”

Mr Putin, in power for 18 years, is widely expected to declare his candidacy for March’s vote towards the end of the year. The Kremlin — which usually fields the same spoiler candidates from opposition parties that are in reality under its full control — has been seeking a way to increase turnout at a time of slumping electoral participation.

外界普遍预计，执政18年的普京将会在今年年底宣布竞选于明年3月举行的总统大选。在选举投票人数大幅下降之际，克里姆林宫一直在寻求增加投票率。克里姆林宫通常会推出来自反对派、但实际上处于其完全控制之下的同一批搅局候选人。

Alexei Navalny, by far the most popular figure in Russia’s opposition, previously accused Ms Sobchak of preparing to mount a presidential bid as a spoiler aimed at dividing anti-Putin forces.

阿列克谢•纳瓦尔尼(Alexei Navalny)绝对是俄罗斯反对派中最受欢迎的人物，他早先指责索布恰克准备利用竞选总统来搅局，目的是分化反普京阵营。

Mr Navalny is barred from running by a fraud conviction he says is politically motivated. He has mounted a campaign nonetheless that has collected 600,000 signatures and opened offices in dozens of cities across the country.

纳瓦尔尼因被判犯下诈骗罪而被禁止竞选总统——他表示，这是带有政治动机的判决。尽管如此，他仍发起竞选活动，收集了60万人的签名，并在全国数十个城市开设了办公室。

Although she joined the opposition during the protests against Mr Putin’s return to the presidency five years ago, Ms Sobchak, 35, is still seen as an acceptable candidate for the Kremlin.

尽管在5年前反对普京再次当选总统的抗议活动期间加入了反对派，但现年35岁的索布恰克仍被克里姆林宫视为可接受的候选人。

Her late father Anatoly, was mayor of St Petersburg in the early 1990s and a political mentor to Mr Putin. Ms Sobchak has denied persistent rumors that the Russian president is in fact her godfather. Ms Sobchak met Mr Putin this week on the eve of her announcement, ostensibly to interview him for a film about her father.

她的已故父亲阿纳托利(Anatoly)曾在上世纪90年代初担任圣彼得堡市长，还是普京的政治导师。一直有传言称普京实际上是她的教父，但索布恰克对此予以否认。索布恰克本周在宣布参选前夕与普京会晤，名义上是为一部关于她父亲的电影而采访普京。

Ms Sobchak said she had told Mr Putin she wanted to run. According to her, she claimed he replied: “Every person has the right to make a decision.”

索布恰克说她已经告诉普京她想竞选总统。据她所说，普京这样答复她：“每个人都有权做出决定。”

Ms Sobchak’s pitch is one of generational renewal. “Ksenia is trying to put forward the idea that ‘Our fathers couldn’t do it, but we, the children, can.’ It’s not for nothing she says she’s her father’s daughter,” said Alexei Chesnakov, a former Kremlin spin doctor. “But her negatives are pretty high. I don’t think she’ll be able to attract a broader audience.”

索布恰克宣扬一种时代变化。“克谢尼娅试图提出这样一种观点：‘我们父辈做不到的事，作为孩子的我们能够做到。’她提到自己父亲并非毫无意义，”克里姆林宫的前发言人阿列克谢•切斯诺科夫(Alexei Chesnakov)说。“但反对她的呼声也很高。我不认为她能吸引更广泛的观众。”

The Kremlin was alarmed earlier this year when Mr Navalny organised nationwide protests on an unprecedented scale. He then began holding campaign rallies in provincial cities that attracted large crowds until he was sentenced to 20 days in jail for violating protest laws earlier this month.

今年早些时候，纳瓦尔尼组织了一系列规模空前的全国性抗议活动，惊动了克里姆林宫。随后，他开始在地方城市召开竞选集会，吸引了大批群众，直到本月初因违反抗议法被判入狱20天。

Last month, Mr Navalny said Ms Sobchak was “playing the repulsive game called ‘Let’s drag a liberal laughingstock to the polls’”. He accused her of preparing her candidacy as a “plus for her show business career”.

上个月，纳瓦尔尼称索布恰克正在“玩一个令人作呕的游戏，这个游戏名叫‘让我们拖着自由的笑柄去投票’”。他指责索布恰克将候选人资格当作“其演艺事业的一项加分”。

The head of Russia’s election commission said earlier this week that Mr Navalny would be allowed to run when his ban expired in 2028.

俄罗斯选举委员会负责人在本周早些时候表示，2028年纳瓦尔尼的禁令到期后，他就可以参加竞选。

Ms Sobchak said that she wanted Mr Navalny to be allowed to run, in which case she promised to consider withdrawing her candidacy. “I might not be your candidate,” she wrote. “But my taking part in this election is good for voters and useful for the Russian political system.”

索布恰克说她希望纳瓦尔尼获准参选，若是那样的话她答应考虑退出竞选。“我也许不是你们心目中的候选人，”她写道，“但我参加这次选举对选民有益，对俄罗斯的政治体系也有帮助。”