The State of the FIDE Presidential Race, One Month Out
By Douglas C. · Thu, 03 Sep 2026
Twenty-four days before delegates gather in Samarkand to elect FIDE's next president, the campaign has turned into as much a fight inside the federation's legal machinery as it is a contest over who should lead it.
Twenty-four days before delegates gather in Samarkand to elect FIDE's next president, the campaign has turned into as much a fight inside the federation's legal machinery as it is a contest over who should lead it. Here's a full refresh on how a three-way race got this contentious, and where things actually stand.It all started in JulyArkady Dvorkovich was running for re-election with Anand as his deputy until late July, when the European Union added him to its Russia sanctions list. Dvorkovich suspended his own presidential powers rather than risk FIDE's finances, Anand stepped in as interim president, and Timur Turlov, who had signed on as Dvorkovich's deputy candidate weeks earlier, moved to the top of what had been Dvorkovich's ticket. Anand slid into the deputy slot. Nominations closed July 26 with three tickets confirmed: Turlov and Anand, Wadim Rosenstein and Gordon Tang, and Jan Henric Buettner and Malcolm Pein. Former FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, backed by the suspended Russian Chess Federation, failed to qualify.The three platforms, brieflyTurlov is pitching FIDE as a service platform, a single digital system tying together ratings, education, and competition for federations, players, and schools, alongside continuity with much of Dvorkovich's existing administration. Rosenstein is running on his track record actually organizing elite events through WR Chess, positioning himself as the tournament-experience candidate. Buettner's platform is the only one with hard numbers attached: a proposed 20% of non-prize FIDE revenue redistributed to federations, a $50 million new commercial revenue target, and defined four-year goals for school chess and women's participation.All three tickets have now filed complaints against each otherThis is the headline development. FIDE confirmed to Chess.com on September 2 that its Electoral Commission has received formal complaints from all three presidential tickets, not two. Rosenstein's complaint, filed in early August, asks the Commission and potentially the Court of Arbitration for Sport to examine Turlov's citizenship status, his history under Ukrainian sanctions, the ChessBase banking situation following Turlov's acquisition of the company, and the transparency of Turlov's claimed $75 million personal investment in chess. Buettner filed his own complaint against Turlov on August 11, covering an all-Russian university team's participation at the World University Championship, sanctions-adjacent business activity by Freedom Holding subsidiaries, and a conflict of interest tied to Freedom, later adding that Turlov's International School Chess Federation flew 23 people from Kazakhstan and Russia to a schools event in South Africa. Turlov and Anand answered with their own complaint against Rosenstein and Tang, alleging invalid federation nominations, premature campaigning ahead of FIDE's official start date, and public statements they characterize as groundless accusations, though notably asking only for an official warning rather than disqualification.The Commission, chaired by Roberto Rivello, was expected to issue a report by the end of August. As of this writing, none has been made public. FIDE's own rules require any eligibility ruling to be communicated no later than 15 days before the election, which puts a hard deadline on the Commission at around September 11.The dossier, and a fresh electoral disputeBeyond the formal complaints, an anonymous dossier containing allegations about Rosenstein's business activities and Russian connections has been circulated to delegates. Rosenstein has accused the Dvorkovich-Turlov camp of being behind it, though neither Turlov nor Dvorkovich has been shown to have any actual role in producing it. Separately, Buettner's camp has alleged that FIDE personnel and resources are being used to assist Turlov's campaign directly, an allegation FIDE has not confirmed.A parallel dispute has emerged out of Africa. Tshepiso Lopang, the African Chess Confederation's outgoing president who lost her re-election bid by a single vote in Addis Ababa back in July, is now aligned with Rosenstein's ticket and is formally challenging that defeat. Her opponent in that election, Benard Wanjala, was backed by Buettner's camp, meaning a close continental election has effectively been folded into the presidential race's wider legal fight.Endorsements and outside noiseDvorkovich himself has publicly backed Turlov, telling Russian state outlet RIA Novosti in late August that he expects Turlov to win and that his victory would benefit FIDE and the wider chess world. Chess journalist Vlad Ghita, who covers the race as accredited Olympiad media, published an informal, self-described unofficial read on delegate sentiment in late August: Turlov still leading with more than 50% support but trending down, Rosenstein in second and rising after a slow start, and Buettner functioning more as a protest-vote outlet than a genuine contender.More recent tracking backs up that trend line, at least on visible momentum. WorldChess's own count of publicly identifiable federation endorsements, updated within the past day, has Rosenstein ahead of both rivals: at least 12 federations on record for him, against nine for Turlov and eight for Buettner. Rosenstein has leaned into that visibility deliberately, he's said outright that he publicizes every new endorsement through his own social channels specifically to make delegate support transparent, and WorldChess describes him as the most PR-savvy of the three candidates. Buettner's campaign hasn't matched that pace of public activity over the same stretch, leaving his visible coalition the smallest of the three by this count, even as his platform remains the only one with detailed figures attached. Turlov's advantage looks less about visible momentum and more structural, he inherited Dvorkovich's existing federation relationships wholesale, support that may not show up in a public endorsement count the same way a fresh public letter does.None of this amounts to a reliable prediction. The vote itself is by secret ballot, delegates can support one candidate publicly and vote differently in Samarkand, and even outlets dedicated to tracking the race closely, WorldChess included, have stopped short of naming a favorite. What can be said with more confidence is that Rosenstein's campaign has generated the most visible momentum of the past few weeks specifically, while Buettner's public presence has been comparatively quiet over that same window.A legendary debate coming upChess.com hosts the campaign's first live debate on September 9, putting all three candidates on the same stage for the first time. The Electoral Commission's eligibility rulings are due by roughly September 11 under FIDE's own deadline rules. Delegates from FIDE's roughly 200 member federations then vote at the General Assembly in Samarkand on September 26 and 27, held alongside the Chess Olympiad itself. With formal complaints, an anonymous dossier, and a contested continental election all still unresolved, there's a real chance the presidency isn't the only outcome still in question when delegates arrive.