Parliamentary elections were held in Belarus on 25 February 2024.[1][2][3] The country elected 110 deputies to the lower house of parliament (House of Representatives) and about 12,000 representatives of local councils.[4]
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All 110 seats in the House of Representatives 56 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 73.09% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
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There were no opposition candidates in these parliamentary campaigns — all contenders come from four registered political parties, each of which is pro-government, or pro-government independents.[5] The Belarusian opposition called for boycotting the elections or voting against all.[6][7] The Belarusian authorities refused to invite observers from the OSCE.[8]
Background
editThe elections were the first since the 2020–2021 Belarusian protests against the authoritarian regime of President Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in office since 1994. Lukashenko warned that the authorities had "learnt our lesson" since the protests and that there would be "no rebellions" during the election. A month before the election, the Belarusian KGB launched a series of raids targeting the families of political prisoners.[9] Observers and human rights organizations have noted that since the protests, the regime has thoroughly "cleansed" the political landscape, and that conditions for free elections are "currently practically absent in Belarus."[10]
On 29 January 2024, at the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, Lukashenko expressed confidence that the voting will be held calmly. "The period is so difficult, but, as you can see, it passes calmly. And I'm sure we'll approach these dates calmly and hold these events just as calmly."[5] Days before the election, Lukashenko accused the West of trying to use "new triggers to destabilize the society" and claimed that Polish authorities were trying to convince senior Belarusian officials to switch their allegiance as part of a coup plot. Belarusian political analyst Valery Karbalevich noted that Lukashenko was treating the election like a "military operation", with authorities seeing any vote "as a threat and a pretext to step up repressions and tighten the screws."[11]
Electoral system and conduct
editThe 110 members of the House of Representatives were elected from single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting.[12]
On 16 February 2023, the Law "On Amendments to the Electoral Code of the Republic of Belarus" was adopted. According to the law, the minimum voter turnout threshold was abolished and a ban on photographing the ballot paper was introduced. In addition, polling stations for voting abroad were abolished and additional requirements for parliamentary candidates were introduced (including a ban on dual citizenship).[13] The Interior Ministry conducted drills during which police detained offenders photographing ballots and creating artificial queues outside polling stations.[14]
Early voting was held from 20 to 24 February 2024 with turnout reaching over 40% according to authorities. The Viasna Human Rights Center said that students, soldiers, teachers and other government employees were forced to participate in early voting.[14] Authorities later said that total turnout reached 73%.[15]
Participating parties
editIn February 2023, the Belarusian government changed the legislation on political parties. The minimum number of members was increased from one to five thousand, the obligation to have structures in all country regions and other tightening norms were introduced.[16] In Summer-Autumn 2023, the Belarusian authorities conducted a mass "re-registration" of political parties, as a result of which only 4 out of 15 parties remained registered. 11 other parties - mostly opposition parties - were legally liquidated at the request of the Ministry of Justice of Belarus.[17] The initiator of the party changes was President Lukashenko, who in April 2022 announced about "the upcoming big work in party building and bringing order in public associations" and demanded to rewrite the legislation.[18] And in December he said that "only those parties should work in the political field of the country, the activity of which corresponds to the basic principles of domestic and foreign policy".[19] The political parties that were allowed to run in the elections have supported Lukashenko's policies.[9]
| Party | Leader | Ideology | 2019 result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes (%) | Seats | ||||
| Communist Party of Belarus (CPB) | Aliaksiej Sokal | Communism Marxism–Leninism |
10.62% | 11 / 110
| |
| Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus (LDPB) | Oleg Gaidukevich | Russian-Belarusian unionism Right-wing populism |
5.33% | 1 / 110
| |
| Republican Party of Labour and Justice (RPTS) | Alexander Khizhnyak | Democratic socialism Social democracy |
6.75% | 6 / 110
| |
| Belaya Rus (PBR) | Oleg Romanov | Russophilia Euroscepticism Agrarianism |
Did not exist | ||
Candidates
edit| Party | Ideology | Candidates by electoral district | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brest Region | Vitebsk Region | Gomel Region | Grodno Region | Minsk Region | Mogilev Region | City of Minsk | Total | |||
| 34 | 33 | 43 | 35 | 35 | 26 | 59 | 265 | |||
| Belarusian Party "Belaya Rus" | Pro-Lukashenko | 23 | 13 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 111 | |
| Communist Party of Belarus | Communism | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 34 | |
| Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus | Right-wing populism | 1 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 36 | |
| Republican Party of Labour and Justice | Democratic socialism | 3 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 22 | |
| Independents | 5 | 11 | 3 | 7 | 15 | 2 | 19 | 62 | ||
Observers
editSince 1995, no election in Belarus has been recognized as free and fair by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).[14] For the 2024 election, its observers were not allowed to participate in the election, marking the third consecutive time that the organization was prevented from doing so in Belarus. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said that the "reasons for this are clear and simple," namely "the traditional dominance of representatives of Western countries in OSCE missions," the imposition of "unjustified and tough" sanctions by Western countries and the "deterioration of logistical opportunities" in the movement of its citizens to and from the country. The Central Election Commission of Belarus instead issued invitations to election commissions in other members of the Commonwealth of Independent States and delegates from the Association of World Election Bodies. It also accredited representatives from 23 European Union member states, including from Germany, Poland and Lithuania, whose identities and affiliations were not disclosed. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization also sent a mission to observe the vote.[10]
Results
edit | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
| Belaya Rus | 51 | New | |||
| Republican Party of Labour and Justice | 8 | +2 | |||
| Communist Party of Belarus | 7 | –4 | |||
| Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus | 4 | +3 | |||
| Independents | 40 | –49 | |||
| Against all | – | – | |||
| Total | 110 | 0 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 6,912,221 | 73.09 | |||
| Source: CEC of Belarus, Tochka.by | |||||
The CEC stated that the results of the election will be established by 1 March 2024.[21][needs update]
Elected deputies
editOn 26 February 2024, the Central Election Commission of Belarus published a preliminary list of elected deputies of the House of Representatives of the eighth convocation.[22][23][24]
Reactions
editOn election day Lukashenko announced that he would run again for president in the 2025 elections.[14]
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenko's exiled opponent in the 2020 Belarusian presidential election, called for a boycott of the election, saying that "there are no people on the ballot who would offer real changes because the regime only has allowed puppets convenient for it to take part". She also called on the international community not to recognize the results of the election.[9] Tsikhanouskaya's video message was broadcast on 2,000 screens used for street advertising across Belarus after opposition activists managed to gain access to them, leading to the arrests of some employees of the firm which owned the screens.[15] Members of the Belarusian opposition have popularly referred to the elections as biazvybary (Belarusian: Бязвыбары, lit. 'without-elections'), in reference to the tight government control over elections.[25][26][27]
Russian president Vladimir Putin congratulated Lukashenko on "the confident victory of patriotic forces of Belarus", which he said helped to "ensure internal political stability."[15]
The United States Department of State condemned the elections, describing them as being "held in a climate of fear under which no electoral processes could be called democratic."[28]
References
edit- ^ "Single Voting Day in Belarus to take place on February 25, 2024". Белтелерадиокомпания. 7 July 2022. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
- ^ "Lukashenko meets with CEC head to discuss 2024 election campaign". eng.belta.by. 2023-06-19. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Belarus' CEC head: Work to prepare for 2024 election campaign on schedule". eng.belta.by. 2023-06-19. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Выборы-2024 в Беларуси: все, что о них нужно знать – DW – 21.02.2024". dw.com (in Russian). Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b "Что ждать от парламентских выборов в Белоруссии". РБК (in Russian). 2024-02-24. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Демсилы предложили две стратегии на будущих выборах — бойкот или голосовать, но против всех. Спросили у экспертов, какая из них лучше". Зеркало (in Russian). 2023-12-13. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ ""Игнорировать и не участвовать". Что советуют политики белорусам в единый день голосования". Зеркало (in Russian). 2023-11-24. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "В ОБСЕ заявили, что решение не приглашать ее наблюдателей на выборы противоречит международным обязательствам Беларуси". Зеркало (in Russian). 2024-01-08. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c "As Belarusians vote in 'sham' polls, Lukashenko reveals re-election plan". Al Jazeera. 25 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Belarus: 2024 elections will not be 'free and fair'". DW. 25 February 2024.
- ^ "As Belarus votes in tightly controlled elections, its leader accuses the West of fueling unrest". Associated Press. 21 February 2024.
- ^ "Belarus". www.idea.int. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
- ^ "Что изменится в Избирательном кодексе Республики Беларусь? На Pravo.by опубликован Закон № 252-З". www.pravo.by. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c d "Belarusians vote in tightly controlled election amid opposition calls for its boycott". Associated Press. 25 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
- ^ a b c "Belarus' election reinforces authoritarian leader's rule despite the opposition call for its boycott". Associated Press. 26 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-26.
- ^ "Лукашенко подписал законы о гражданском обществе и политических партиях". Зеркало (in Russian). 2023-02-14. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Запретить любое мнение: власти РБ строят партийную систему?". dw.com (in Russian). Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Лукашенко поручил Минюсту дать людям "четкий сигнал", что такое гражданское общество". Зеркало (in Russian). 2022-04-21. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Лукашенко озвучил, какие политические партии смогут работать в Беларуси". Зеркало (in Russian). 2022-12-13. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Сведения о партийности кандидатов в депутаты Палаты представителей" (PDF). Retrieved 24 February 2024.
- ^ "ЦИК Беларуси". 2024-02-24. Retrieved 2024-02-26 – via Telegram.
Итоги выборов депутатов будут установлены к 1 марта 2024 года.
[The results of the elections of deputies will be established by March 1, 2024.] - ^ "ЦИК обнародовал фамилии депутатов Палаты представителей восьмого созыва". www.shliah.by. Retrieved 2024-02-26.
- ^ "ЦИК обнародовал фамилии депутатов Палаты представителей восьмого созыва". BelTA. 26 February 2024.
- ^ "ЦИК обнародовал фамилии депутатов Палаты представителей восьмого созыва". zviazda.by (in Russian). 2024-02-26. Retrieved 2024-02-26.
- ^ "Анатоль Лябедзька: Безальтэрнатыўныя выбары – гэта бязвыбары" [Anatol Liabiedzka: These are elections without an alternative – biazvybary]. Radyjo Racyja (in Belarusian). 6 February 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Ціханоўская назвала выбары 2024 году «бязвыбарамі» і заклікала беларусаў «ня даць сябе падмануць»" [Tsikhanouskaya names 2024 elections "biazvybary" and tells Belarusians "don't be fooled"]. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (in Belarusian). 24 November 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Генадзь Коршунаў: «Бязвыбары» 2024 года — гэта не больш чым трэніроўка перад 2025 годам" [Hienadz Koršunaŭ: 2024 "biazvybary" no more than a training exercise before 2025]. Novy Chas (in Belarusian). 6 December 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "ЗША асудзілі "фіктыўныя выбары рэжыму Лукашэнкі"" [USA condemns "sham elections of Lukashenka's regime"]. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (in Belarusian). 25 February 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2024.