Data and script for "When Candidate Exclusion Is Viewed as Unfair"

Autocratic regimes often employ legal pretexts to bar opposition candidates from standing in elections. This study examines whether prior awareness of a disqualified candidate’s popularity can cue voters — particularly regime supporters — to recognise such exclusions as manipulative. Evidence comes from a survey experiment conducted in Russia shortly before the 2021 parliamentary elections. The findings show that among pro-regime voters, only moderates are more likely to perceive these exclusions as unfair when a candidate’s viability is known. However, a noticeable portion of strongly pro-incumbent respondents at least begin to question the fairness of such disqualifications.