Deadline arrives for Belarus to collect signatures for August election
The deadline for Belarusian officials to collect signatures for the upcoming August presidential election arrives today.
Challenges to the 25-year incumbency of President Alexander Lukashenko have mounted in the run-up to the “least predictable” election in the state’s relatively short history. For the first time ever, two opposition candidates—banker Victor Babariko and technology executive Valery Tsepkalo—stand a theoretical chance at victory, contingent upon their successful registration by the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) and the proper finalisation of the vote count.
Experts claim that Lukashenko—whose regime recently arrested prominent opposition figures and a popular vlogger at anti-government protests—is prepared to use force to retain power, as he has explicitly prohibited a Belarusian revolution akin to Armenian and Ukrainian opposition movements. His five terms in office have been tarred with allegations of dictatorial overreach and corruption at the highest level.
Uncorrupted signature tallies for the 15 registered activist groups—each of which must garner 100,000 signatures by the start of July—could be a strong indicator of imminent political transition. Surprise candidates will likely leverage the support of increasingly moderate voters, a borderline impossibility in past elections. Lukashenko’s poor showing in recent online polls, which were subsequently banned by his administration, reveals an electorate ready to dispel with “Europe’s last dictator”. Expect the current pandemic-induced economic predicament to boost support for Tsepkalo, who effectively created a Belarusian Silicon Valley and represents the promise of the nation’s burgeoning technology industry.
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