The de facto CEC (Central Election Commission) has set the date for the early so-called “presidential” election in the occupied Tskhinvali region for September 18, 2026.
The “CEC” has already begun its so-called pre-election work, and a “calendar plan” has been approved.
As expected, the first candidate for the post of de facto leader of Tskhinvali is the new acting “leader” of the occupied region of Georgia, Marat Kambolov.
According to observers, he was appointed by Moscow, which removed the former “head” Alan Gagloev ahead of schedule (the Russian President made him his advisor).
As a reminder, the former de facto leader of Tskhinvali, Alan Gagloev, was dismissed early following a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Prior to the meeting, Ossetian social media channels reported that Alan Gagloev would step down on June 23, 2026, as the Kremlin had already prepared its protégé, Marat Kambolov, who had previously been appointed as the so-called “prime minister.”
And indeed, on June 23, 2026, Marat Kambolov became the acting “leader” of the Tskhinvali region—reportedly “in accordance with the Constitution of South Ossetia.”
Kambolov is a citizen of the Russian Federation, born in North Ossetia-Alania. He graduated from the agricultural institute in Gori and spent most of his career in leadership positions within Russian federal agencies, including the Russian Ministry of Education, the Ministry for Nationalities and Federal Relations, as well as serving as deputy head of the Federal Agency for Science and Innovation, deputy head of the Ministry of Education, and at the Kurchatov Institute research center, which is considered one of Russia’s most influential scientific and technological structures.
According to observers and experts, he was the one tipped to become the “leader” of Tskhinvali during the “elections” of the so-called “president,” which were originally scheduled to take place in the occupied Tskhinvali region in 2027.
