Vladivostok, Russia
A convicted felon nicknamed “Winnie the Pooh” was elected mayor of the notoriously corruption-ridden city of Vladivostok this week. Vladimir Nikolayev was supposed to face the favored candidate, former mayor Viktor Cherepkov, in a runoff. But Cherepkov was injured in a grenade blast outside his office, and then barred from running in a dubious court decision just days before the vote. Other possible replacement candidates refused to run, calling the election a farce. Nikolayev, 30, spent 18 months in prison a few years ago for beating up one government official and threatening to kill another. He is described in at least one major legal textbook as a prominent criminal underworld figure.
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