The 2026 Belgorod Oblast gubernatorial election took place on 18–20 September 2026, on common election day, to elect the Governor of Belgorod Oblast, coinciding with the 2026 Russian legislative election. Acting Governor Alexander Shuvaev was elected for a full term in office.
Background In September 2020 then-Governor of Belgorod Oblast Yevgeny Savchenko, the longest-serving Russian governor in history, who led the region since 1993, unexpectedly announced his resignation after he was elected to the Belgorod Oblast Duma and appointed to the Federation Council. After Savchenko's resignation First Deputy Governor Denis Butsayev became acting Governor, while the whole move was viewed to be orchestrated by Savchenko in order to appoint a preferred successor as Butsayev's position was created hours before the transition. The move apparently was not approved by the Presidential Administration because Butsayev was not formally appointed acting governor. In November 2020 President of Russia Vladimir Putin appointed Deputy Chairman of the Government of Stavropol Krai Vyacheslav Gladkov as acting Governor of Belgorod Oblast, replacing Butsayev. Gladkov easily won the election for a full term in September 2021 with 78.79% of the vote.
Following the start of the Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present) Belgorod Oblast, which is situated on the border with Ukraine, suffered significantly from the conflict, including deadly UAV and missile strikes as well as incursuions. Due to constant attacks some residents of western Belgorod Oblast districts were evacuated. In these circumstances Gladkov's profile was elevated to the national level, while his management and communication skills in the war-torn region were widely touted. Gladkov's high profile even led to rumours about his appointment as Head of the Presidential Office for Domestic Policy following the 2024 presidential election, however, Gladkov remained in his position as Governor of Belgorod Oblast.
In the regional elite dynamics a major turmoil occurred in March 2022 when Senator Savchenko published his memoirs where he openly admitted to speaking with ghosts through a physic and worshipping an entity called "Monoston". Following the controversial memoirs release and subsequent condemnation, Savchenko's confidants – Belgorod Oblast Duma speaker and her deputies Yelena Bondarenko and Valery Sergachyov – resigned from the chamber, while Savchenko himself left Federation Council in June 2024. As the result of Savchenko's downfall Gladkov was able to consolidate power in the region, eliminating the network of his predecessor. In June 2025, Deputy Governor of Belgorod Oblast Rustem Zainullin was arrested for embezzlement in the fortification construction, which was seen as a blow to Gladkov. In August 2025 acting Deputy Governor of Kursk Oblast Vladimir Bazarov was also arrested for embezzlement in the fortification construction during his time as Deputy Governor of Belgorod Oblast in 2020–2025.
In March 2026 governor Gladkov asked political parties and candidates to refrain from campaigning in the upcoming gubernatorial and State Duma elections due to security concerns. In April 2026 Vedomosti reported that Vyacheslav Gladkov could resign from his position due to health issues and deteriorating quality of life in the region, despite governor's good personal ratings; Gladkov would presumably be appointed Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia or Russian Ambassador to Abkhazia. Several sources reported Hero of Russia major general Alexander Shuvaev, Deputy Governor of Irkutsk Oblast since January 2026, to be the frontrunner for the position of acting Governor of Belgorod Oblast.
Amid resignation rumours Governor Gladkov took leave in April 2026 for two weeks, later extending it for another two weeks. On May 13, 2026, Gladkov submitted his resignation to President Putin which the latter accepted. Putin appointed Deputy Governor of Irkutsk Oblast Alexander Shuvaev as acting Governor of Belgorod Oblast. In late June 2026 Gladkov was appointed Russian Ambassador to Abkhazia.
Candidates In Belgorod Oblast candidates for governor of Belgorod Oblast can be nominated only by registered political parties. A candidate for Governor of Belgorod Oblast should be a Russian citizen and at least 30 years old. Candidates for Governor of Belgorod Oblast should not have a foreign citizenship or residence permit. Each candidate in order to be registered is required to collect at least 5% of the signatures of municipal deputies and heads of municipalities. Also gubernatorial candidates present 3 candidacies to the Federation Council and election winner later appoints one of the presented candidates.
Declared candidates Candidate name,political partyOccupationStatusRef.Vladimir AbelmazovA Just Russia Former Member of Belgorod Oblast Duma (2020–2025)2021 RPPSS gubernatorial candidateRegisteredYevgeny DremovLiberal Democratic Party Member of Belgorod Oblast Duma (2025–present)Aide to State Duma member Ivan Musatov2021 gubernatorial candidateRegisteredValery ShevlyakovCommunist Party Member of Belgorod Oblast Duma (2010–present)RegisteredAlexander ShuvaevUnited Russia Acting Governor of Belgorod Oblast (2026–present)Former Deputy Governor of Irkutsk Oblast (2026)RegisteredArtyom ZotovParty of Pensioners Member of Belgorod City Council (2023–present)Property management businessmanRegisteredSergey YeskovRodina Chairman of the party regional officeWithdrew
Eliminated in the primary Vadim Radchenko (United Russia), Chairman of the Belgorod City Council (2022–present), Member of the City Council (2013–present)
Candidates for Federation Council Incumbent Senator Zhanna Chefranova (Independent) was not re-nominated.
Gubernatorial candidate,political partyCandidates for Federation CouncilStatusVladimir AbelmazovA Just Russia * Oleg Korchagin, Member of Stary Oskol Council of Deputies (2017–present), nonprofit director* Sergey Milshin, party official* Vladimir Zatsepin, community activistRegisteredYevgeny DremovLiberal Democratic Party * Konstantin Klimashevsky, former Member of Belgorod City Council (2018–2023), 2017 gubernatorial candidate* Andrey Koltykov, Member of Belgorodsky District Council (2025–present), attorney* Ilya Komarov, Member of Ivnyansky District Council (2025–present), communication lab headRegisteredValery ShevlyakovCommunist Party * Artyom Akhadov, Member of Stary Oskol Council of Deputies (2022–present), medical centre director* Member of Krasnogvardeysky District Council (2025–present), accountant* Yury Shashnin, Member of Belgorod Oblast Duma (2025–present)RegisteredAlexander ShuvaevUnited Russia * Aleksandr Lorenz, Deputy Governor of Belgorod Oblast – Chief of Staff to the Governor (2024–present)* Natalia Poluyanova, Member of State Duma (2021–present)* Valery Skrug, Member of State Duma (2011, 2016–present)RegisteredArtyom ZotovParty of Pensioners * Yelena Petrova, accountant* Nikita Povetkin, IT specialist* Natalya Tsyguleva, accountantRegistered
Finances All sums are in rubles. Financial Report Source Abelmazov Dremov Shevlyakov Shuvayev Zotov First 60,000 120,000 1,040,000 20,400,000 TBA Final TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD
Results
|- style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:center;" ! style="text-align:left;" colspan=2| Candidate ! style="text-align:left;"| Party ! width="75"|Votes ! width="30"|% |- | style="background-color:"| | style="text-align:left;"| Alexander Shuvaev (incumbent) | style="text-align:left;"| United Russia | | 65.97 |- | style="background-color:"| | style="text-align:left;"| Yevgeny Dremov | style="text-align:left;"| Liberal Democratic Party | | 10.66 |- | style="background-color:"| | style="text-align:left;"| Valery Shevlyakov | style="text-align:left;"| Communist Party | | 9.12 |- | style="background-color:"| | style="text-align:left;"| Artyom Zotov | style="text-align:left;"| Party of Pensioners | | 7.55 |- | style="background-color:"| | style="text-align:left;"| Vladimir Abelmazov | style="text-align:left;"| A Just Russia | | 5.17 |- | style="text-align:left;" colspan="3"| Valid votes | | 98.47 |- | style="text-align:left;" colspan="3"| Blank ballots | | 1.53% |- style="font-weight:bold" | style="text-align:left;" colspan="3"| Total | | 100.00 |- | style="background-color:#E9E9E9;" colspan="6"| |- | style="text-align:left;" colspan="3"| Turnout | | 63.20 |- | style="text-align:left;" colspan="3"| Registered voters | | 100.00 |- | colspan="5" style="background-color:#E9E9E9;"| |- style="font-weight:bold" | colspan="4" |Source:
Governor Shuvaev appointed Deputy Governor Aleksandr Lorenz (Independent) to the Federation Council, replacing incumbent Senator Zhanna Chefranova (Independent).
See also 2026 Russian regional elections
References