Russia charges leader of a prominent election watchdog

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities have charged one of the leaders of a prominent independent election monitoring group with being involved with an “undesirable” organization, his lawyer says. The case against Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia’s leading election watchdog Golos, is the latest in the monthslong crackdown on Kremlin critics and rights activists that the government ratcheted up after sending troops into Ukraine. Melkonyants faces up to six years in prison and will appear in a Moscow court tomorrow. Police raided the homes of 14 Golos members on Thursday in eight different cities, Russian media reported. Melkonyants’ apartment in Moscow was also raided.