Vitaly Milonov

Vitaly Valentinovich Milonov (Russian: Виталий Валентинович Милонов), born 23 January 1974 in Leningrad, Soviet Union is a Russian politician and Member of the State Duma for United Russia.
After studying Local Governance Administration in the North-West Academy of Public Administration in St. Petersburg, from which he graduated in 2006, he completed a correspondence course at the St. Tikhon Orthodox Humanities University in Moscow.
His political career began in 1991, when he joined the Free Democratic Party of Russia. From 1994 to 1995, he was an assistant to Vitaly Viktorovich Savitsky, chairman in the 1990s of the existing Christian Democratic Union of Russia (CDU). During this time Milonov was also chairman of the "Young Christian Democrats", a political youth branch of the CDU Russia. Later he became a friend of the Russian politician Galina Starovoitova who supported him politically as well. After the murder of Starovoitova, he turned away from politics. In 2004 he began again his political career at the municipal level as a council member of the community "Dachnoe", in 2005 as head of the city administration "Krasnenkaya rechka". In 2007 he successfully ran for election to the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg and was in his first term Chairman of the Committee for the establishment of the government, local government and territorial management structure. In 2009, he moved to the Chair of the Committee for legislation. In 2011 he was re-elected as an MLA. While in the legislature, Milonov was the principal sponsor of legislation criminalizing "homosexual propaganda directed toward minors". In 2016 elections, he was elected to the State Duma representing United Russia.
He is married and has two children. In 1991 he joined the Baptist church. Later, in 1998, he converted to the Russian Orthodox Church.

Homosexuality

In 2013, Milonov stated that gay athletes could be subject to arrest at the Sochi Olympics, if promoting homosexuality to minors. He stated, "If a law has been approved by the federal legislature and signed by the president, then the government has no right to suspend it. It doesn't have the authority." Milonov also protested the Side by Side LGBT film festival in November 2013.

On October 30, 2014, Milonov spoke out about Apple CEO Tim Cook's homosexuality and said on the FlashNord website: “What could he bring us? The Ebola virus, AIDS, gonorrhea? They all have unseemly ties over there.”

Milonov is interviewed in the 2014 documentary film Campaign of Hate: Russia and Gay Propaganda.

Antisemitism

On March 19, 2014, Milonov reportedly made anti-Semitic statements to St. Petersburg legislative council. According to the svodka.net news website, Milonov stated that Jews "vilify any saint, it is in their tradition of 2,000 years, beginning with the appeals to crucify the Savior, ending with accusations of anti-Semitism against St. John of Kronstadt." Regarding allegations that St. John of Kronstadt, a 19th-century religious leader, was a supporter of the Black Hundred, Milonov argued that this allegation was based on “complete lies, a modern neo-liberal fable with a sulfuric, deep history of Satanism."

Other controversies

In 2015, Milonov reported that he proposed to the Minister of Internal Affairs to introduce compulsory driving license for bicycle riders, since they behave improperly on the road.

On 15 June 2016, Milonov sent an official request to the Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, proposing to use the historic name Constantinople for Istanbul in all Russian media and maps.

Milonov was married to Eva Liburkina between 2008 and 2011, but is now divorced. They raised three children —daughter Marfa, son Nikolay and a foster-son. Milonov is well known as a deeply religious Christian. He was demonstratively wearing a shirt with slogan "Orthodoxy or death!".

Milonov is also known as a board games player. He frequently plays computer game Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft by Blizzard Entertainment.