‘Russia’s Paris Hilton’ will fight Putin in election

A RUSSIAN TV star described as the country’s version of Paris Hilton has said she will run for president against Vladimir Putin.

Ksenia Sobchak, pictured, said she planned to run in the presidential election next March.

Polls suggest Putin will comfortably win if he seeks a fourth term as expected.

Miss Sobchak, a socialite whose father was mayor of St Petersburg, said she had decided to run because she was sick of the same politicians running year after year.

In a video clip posted online last night, Miss Sobchak, 35, said she had the right to run for Russia’s top political job under the country’s constitution.

‘I decided to exercise that right because I am against all of those [candidates] who usually exercise that right,’ said Sobchak.

‘When I was 18 and was studying in university, Vladimir Putin became president of Russia. Children who were born that year will go and vote themselves this year. Just think about that.’

But Putin critic Alexei Navalny, commenting on rumours she would run last month, said Sobchak was being drawn into ‘a fairly loathsome Kremlin game’ in which a ‘liberal laughing-stock’ was put up for election in order to distract voters.