Vladimir Putin declares his support for Kamala Harris for the American presidential election in November

At an economic forum in Vladivostok, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his support for Kamala Harris in the US presidential election on 5 November 2024. This declaration comes in the wake of accusations of electoral interference made by Washington and rejected by Moscow.

Vladimir Putin explained that the support for Harris stemmed from a recommendation made by US President Joe Biden himself: ‘President Biden advised his constituents to support Mrs Harris, so we will support her too’, he said. Putin added with a touch of levity: ‘What’s more, her expressive and contagious laughter testifies to her good health.’

The Russian president also criticised Donald Trump, pointing out that the former president had imposed ‘more sanctions on Russia than any other president before him’. Putin expressed hope that Kamala Harris could avoid such measures.

Russia was accused of meddling in the 2016 presidential election in favour of Donald Trump, who won. In response to accusations of meddling in the November 2024 election, US authorities have imposed sanctions and opened investigations against officials from Russian media outlet RT.

Russian diplomatic spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described these measures as an ‘information campaign’ prepared in the run-up to the election and promised a Russian response that would ‘make everyone shudder’. The US authorities did not specify which side would benefit from the alleged Russian interference, with US Attorney General Merrick Garland indicating only that Russia’s preferences had not changed since the last election.

Before Joe Biden withdrew from the race in favour of Kamala Harris, Vladimir Putin had expressed a preference for the incumbent over Donald Trump. The former US President, for his part, is often accused by his Democratic critics of having an affinity with Vladimir Putin.