News & Events in Belarus

Voting will be running from 8.00 till 20.00. However, precinct elections commissions in military units, sanatoriums, hospitals, rest homes, and other health care organizations may declare voting finished before 20.00 once all registered voters have cast their ballots.

Voters are issued a ballot paper upon producing: passport of the Republic of Belarus, military service card for active-duty military personnel, civil servant identification card, pensioner identification card or disabled identification card with a photo, university student identification card, temporary certificate issued by police to citizens who have lost their passports, driver’s license.

Voting for other citizens is not allowed even if there is a letter of attorney, because, according to the law, everyone must vote in person. Voting is allowed at the place of permanent or temporary registration.

The ballot paper is filled in a cabin or a room for secret voting. The reverse side of a ballot paper is signed by at least two members of a precinct election commission. Voters fill in the ballot paper themselves by putting any sign next to the name of the candidate of their choice. If a voter votes against all the candidates, he/she puts a sign next to the phrase “None of the above”. If the ballot paper has one name, then the voter puts any mark in the box “for” or in the box “against”.

Citizens who are unable to complete their ballot paper themselves shall have the right to invite into the cabin or room for secret vote another person on his/her discretion, apart form the members of the election commissions, candidates, their proxies, observers and representatives of mass media. Blind and visually impaired citizens will be provided with special tactile devices.

If a voter makes a mistake while voting, he/she needs to ask a member of the district commission for a new ballot paper.

If due to poor health or any other good reason the voter cannot come to the local polling station on Election Day, he or she can verbally or in written form request the relevant election commission to organize domiciliary voting. The request is to be submitted by 18.00 on 11 September 2016.

Belarus has a majoritarian electoral system. Elections are recognized as valid if the turnout makes up more than a half of votes cast in a constituency.

A candidate to the parliament is considered elected if he/she gets the highest number of votes. If there is only one candidate on the ballot paper, he/she is recognized elected if he/she gets the support from more than a half of the voters.

6,990,696 people are eligible to vote at this year's parliamentary elections in Belarus.