Russia’s Prosecutor General, Igor Krasnov, has submitted his candidacy for the position of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, a role that has been unfilled since the passing of the former chief justice over a month ago, according to reports from Russian media on Monday.

The top position at the Russian Supreme Court became available at the end of last month when Chief Justice Irina Podnosova succumbed to cancer at the age of 71. Since her death, Deputy Chief Justice Yuri Ivanenko has been acting as the chief justice.

Monday was the final day for applications for the chief justice role, as stated by the High Qualification Board of Judges. A qualifying exam, originally set for last Thursday, was reportedly delayed due to insufficient candidates, according to the newspaper Vedomosti.

Vedomosti previously reported that five anonymous sources suggested Alexander Bastrykin, the head of Russia’s Investigative Committee, was the “most obvious” candidate for the chief justice position. It remains unclear whether Bastrykin submitted an application before the deadline.

Krasnov, 49, has been at the helm of the Prosecutor General’s Office since January 2020. Just last Friday, President Vladimir Putin awarded him the title of Honored Lawyer of Russia.

Before his current role, Krasnov served as Bastrykin’s deputy at the Investigative Committee starting in 2016. He was the lead investigator in the case concerning the 2015 murder of opposition figure Boris Nemtsov and has more recently been involved in the state’s increasing nationalization of private assets.

Candidates for the Chief Justice of Russia’s Supreme Court are nominated by the president and need to be confirmed by the Federation Council for a term of six years. Podnosova’s predecessor, Vyacheslav Lebedev, served as the head of the Supreme Court from 1989 until his death in February 2024.