Russia's central election commission has voted to bar opposition leader Alexei Navalny from running in a presidential election next year, saying he was ineligible because of a past criminal conviction, which the 41-year-old says was trumped up.

Navalny has been jailed three times this year and charged with breaking the law by repeatedly organizing public meetings and rallies.

He has been a fierce opponent of Russian president Putin, who is widely expected to win re-election in March, extending 17 years in power.

Navalny is a veteran campaigner against corruption among Russia's elite. It was only on Sunday that he cleared the first hurdle in his bid for the presidency, winning the initial support of over 700 people at a gathering in Moscow, well above the minimum 500 needed to initiate a presidential bid.

Following the decision, Navalny immediately called for his supporters to boycott the election and said he would appeal the verdict ruling him out of a run at the presidency.