Navalny Widow to US: Don't Take Democracy for Granted

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in a Russian penal colony earlier this year, had a message for American voters: Don't take democracy for granted.

Navalnaya made the comments Thursday in an interview on ABC's "The View." While most of her interview was devoted to her late husband's memoir, "Patriot," she was asked if she had a message to American voters with the election coming Nov. 5.

"I would say to American voters, don't take everything like granted," she said. "You are still living in democratic country, and I still believe in American institutions, and just make the right choice," Navalnaya added.

"Patriot" was published this week. Most of it was written by Navalny while he was imprisoned. Navalny was first sentenced in 2021 to 2 1/2 years in prison for violating his parole while recovering in Germany from being severely poisoned, he claimed, on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In March 2022, he was sentenced to an additional nine years after being found guilty of embezzlement and contempt of court. Navalny was convicted in August 2023 on charges of extremism and sentenced to 19 years in prison.

The U.S. and the Western world accused Putin and Russia of conducting unjust trials to silence Navalny, which happened permanently when he died in February at 47. Putin has been accused of having Navalny killed.

"When he was killed, it was very important for me to show that even they are ready to kill the person, to kill our opposition leader. He wasn't just my husband, he was very close friend," Navalnaya said on "The View."

"He was leader whom I supported, and it was very important for me to show that we'll continue our fight and to remind the world about him."

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