Gennady Zyuganov, the head of the Russian Communist Party (KPRF), is set to become a presidential candidate after the Central Electoral Commission on Wednesday registered his authorized representatives and allowed him to open a campaign account.
After opening the account and completing a first financial report, Zyuganov, will be registered as a candidate.
Currently, the only officially registered candidate to run for the presidency is Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
On Saturday, the congress of the Russian Communist Party unanimously nominated Zyuganov as their candidate.
Zyuganov on Monday submitted documents required to be officially registered as presidential candidate to the Central Election Commission and called on Putin to take part in a public debate.
Putin has not ruled out the possibility of holding a televised debate with Zyuganov.
It will be the fourth time that Zyuganov, 67, has run for president. He was the second-place finisher in 1996, 2000 and 2008. This time around, Zyuganov promises to hold new parliamentary elections if he is elected.
He also said that TV and radio debates between all presidential candidates, including Putin, should be mandatory.
