40 percent of the votes in the box early

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Lerato Khumalo

Presidential election in Belarus

Election in Belarus: 40 percent of votes cast early

Updated on January 25, 2025 – 9:11 p.mReading time: 1 min.

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Almost half of the population is said to have voted before the actual election day. (Source: Pavel Bednyakov/AP/dpa/dpa-bilder)

Critics describe the vote on the president in Belarus as a sham election that only serves to legitimize long-term ruler Lukashenko. There is evidence that points to manipulation.

According to official information, more than 40 percent of the votes were cast early in the presidential election in Belarus, which was criticized as a farce. The election commission said Belarusians had been entitled to vote early since Tuesday. “In the five days, 41.81 percent of citizens eligible to vote voted.” The actual election day is Sunday.

Critics see early voting as a tool used by the authorities in Belarus to manipulate voter turnout and results. There is no independent control in the authoritarian ex-Soviet republic. Ruler Alexander Lukashenko plans to secure his seventh term in office in the presidential election.

According to many observers, his challenger Svetlana Tichanowskaja won the previous elections in 2020. Nevertheless, Lukashenko was credited with 80 percent of the vote. Like many other opposition figures, Tichanowskaya was forced abroad during the violently suppressed protests.