The hallmark of any democratic election is a ballot that presents voters with distinct choices over candidates and parties and, presumably, policies. Candidates shape these choices through their electoral strategies – whether they run for office, whether they join a party, which district they contest, and how they campaign. Thus, candidates and their decisions shape election outcomes, ranging from national results – winners and losers, legislative factions and governments – to electoral infrastructure – information about voters' preferences and the viability of candidate or party strategies, coordination among voters and candidates, and cooperation in political parties. This chapter focuses on the first of these decisions: the decision to contest a seat in the State Duma.

As noted in Chapter 2, Russia's experience with competitive elections highlights an important paradox: Offering voters choices between different candidates does not always produce a consolidated democracy. The analysis of candidate entry provides the first illustration of this phenomenon. While the number of candidates contesting each seat in Russia has declined over time, it remains high. Many hopeless candidates vie for each national legislative mandate. Some races are decided by a small plurality of votes. Many candidates run as independents.