Jailed leader of a prominent election watchdog is on trial in Russia

MOSCOW (AP) — A jailed leader of a prominent independent election monitoring group in Russia appeared in court on Wednesday as his trial continued on charges of organizing the work of an “undesirable” organization. Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia’s leading election watchdog Golos, faces up to six years in prison if convicted. He has rejected the charges as politically motivated. The case against him is part of the monthslong crackdown on Kremlin critics that the government ratcheted up after sending troops into Ukraine. Golos, which has regularly exposed mass violations during elections in Russia, has not been designated as “undesirable” — a label that makes involvement with such organizations a criminal offense.