Russian authorities on Thursday banned from the presidential race the only candidate who had openly contested President Vladimir V. Putin’s hold on power in Russia, and who made his opposition to the war in Ukraine central to his campaign. The move by Russia’s Central Electoral Commission, the body that administers elections in Russia, was the latest predictable twist in a campaign that few doubt will result in Mr. Putin’s re-election in March. Mr. Putin’s expected victory in the March 15-17 presidential election would secure him a fifth term in the Kremlin, cementing his rule as one of the longest and most consequential in Russian history. The commission’s dismissal of the antiwar candidate, Boris B. Nadezhdin, demonstrated how the Kremlin has decided to remove all contenders who deviate from the party line. Mr. Nadezhdin, who has attracted thousands of supporters across Russia, has called the decision to invade Ukraine a “fatal mistake.”

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Persons: Vladimir V, Putin’s, Boris B, Nadezhdin, ” Organizations: Russia’s, Electoral Commission, Mr, Kremlin Locations: Russia, Ukraine