Belarus president Lukashenko to seek seventh term in January vote

Opposition calls for non-recognition of vote set to extend Lukashenko’s 30-year rule.

Belarus plans to hold a presidential vote, in which incumbent Alexander Lukashenko is likely to secure a seventh straight term, on January 26.

The Central Election Commission (CEC) announced the date in Minsk on Wednesday. Lukashenko, a staunch ally of Russia who has been accused of manipulating previous elections and stamping out political opposition, has tightened his grip on dissent since Moscow launched its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022.

The CEC said in a statement on social media that parliament had approved the date of the vote. Lukashenko said earlier this year that he would seek re-election in 2025.

Democratic forces in Belarus, seeking to unseat Lukashenko since he first took power in 1994 following the collapse of the Soviet Union, have previously stated that they will seek non-recognition of the election by the international community.

Lukashenko, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin talk in Moscow, Russia, in April 2023 [AP Photo]

As in previous votes, the last election in 2020 was marred by reports of widespread fraud. The CEC’s announcement of Lukashenko’s victory that year triggered weeks of mass protests that appeared to put Belarus on the edge of revolution.

However, Lukashenko managed to take a grip of the situation and a vicious crackdown followed, with many thousands arrested or fleeing.

Belarus has about 1,300 political prisoners, according to the Viasna human rights group.

‘Sham’

Among those forced into exile in 2020 was challenger Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who had earlier claimed to have won with more than 60 percent of the vote.

She was quick to slam the announcement of the election date, doubting the likelihood of a free and fair race.

“Lukashenka has announced the date of his ‘reelection’,” Tsikhanouskaya wrote on social media, using a different spelling of the president’s name. “It’s a sham with no real electoral process, conducted in an atmosphere of terror.”

https://x.com/Tsihanouskaya/status/1848997716862345374

“No alternative candidates or observers will be allowed,” she continued. “We call on Belarusians and the international community to reject this farce.”

Having previously come close to sealing a detente with the West amid an apparent cooling of relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko’s crackdown on political dissent over the last decade or more has seen him return firmly to Moscow’s fold.

In February 2022 he allowed Russian troops to use Belarusian territory to launch their invasion of Ukraine.

Russia has announced plans to locate strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus. Lukashenko recently reiterated threats that he will use nuclear weapons if his country is attacked.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies