No doubt without a ballot: Belarusians again cast their votes for Alexander Lukashenko

Alexander Lukashenko won the presidential election in Belarus with 87.6% of votes according to exit polls. The turnout amounted to 81.5%, which testifies to the high interest of the residents of the republic in the future of their country: the incumbent head of state has become a guarantor of peace and stability for many citizens. Despite the attempts to destabilize the situation from outside, the Belarusian society did not give in to provocations. No gross violations were recorded during the voting, said Sergei Lebedev, CIS Secretary General, head of the mission of observers of the organization at the elections, to "Izvestia. He also noted a particularly solemn atmosphere on the voting day, inherent in all post-Soviet countries, he said. The material of "Izvestia" is devoted to the course of voting in Belarus, predictability of international reaction and the probability of unrest at the end of the elections.

Election results in Belarus

Alexander Lukashenko wins the presidential election in Belarus with 87.6% of votes, according to the exit poll of the Belarusian Committee of International Organizations. According to the results of the poll, the first secretary of the Communist Party Central Committee, Sergei Syrankov, won 2.7% of the votes. Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party, MP Oleg Gaidukevich received 1.8% of votes, while businessman Anna Kanopatskaya was supported by 1.6%, while chairman of the Republican Party of Labor and Justice Alexander Khizhnyak got the least - 1.2%. 5.1% voted against all of them.

Chairman of the CEC Igor Karpenko said that the voter turnout amounted to 85.7%. At the same time, the total number of citizens on the voting lists reached 6.9 million. Karpenko added that the situation on the main day of voting at all polling stations was generally calm. Only isolated cases of photographing filled ballots and attempts to take them out of the polling station were recorded.

The CEC plans to summarize the final results of the presidential election on February 3.

January 25, early voting was completed in Belarus. The turnout amounted to 41.81% of the citizens included in the voter lists. At the same time, on the first day, the figure reached 8%, although the previous presidential election in 2020, when almost half as many people came to the polling stations that day - only 4.98%.

Alexander Lukashenko took part in the voting on the main day - on January 26, he arrived at polling station No. 1 at the Belarusian State University of Physical Culture, where correspondents from around the world began to gather in the morning. It should be noted that absolutely all media representatives who applied for accreditation in 2025 received accreditation - among them were 331 foreign journalists from 23 countries.

The atmosphere at the site turned out to be homelike calm - here you could buy local treats, cheeses and drinks, among which there was even a tincture. The polling station was also open for Minsk residents - they came to vote just 20 minutes before the president's arrival.

After voting, Alexander Lukashenko held a press conference for journalists. The media representatives were interested in quite different areas, but the focus of attention, of course, remained relations with Moscow and the West, the Ukrainian crisis, the plans of the leader of the republic, and, of course, the election process.

There were 5,325 polling stations organized in the republic. And on the main day of voting 207 polling stations worked in hospitals, sanatoriums, rest homes and other health care organizations. The elections were organized according to the highest international standards, said Konstantin Kosachev, coordinator of the CIS IPA monitoring group and Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council.

- All the necessary conditions for the free expression of the will of citizens have been provided. There is no doubt that the organization of the elections meets international standards and deserves the highest praise. <...> We have not recorded any serious violations that could affect the voting process," he said.

On the whole, the voting was held in a festive atmosphere, which, however, is common to all post-Soviet countries, said Sergei Lebedev, CIS Secretary General and head of the CIS election observer mission.

- I would like to say with great satisfaction that the elections are going on calmly. <...> And, of course, I cannot but emphasize that the tradition of holding elections in such a festive atmosphere has been preserved throughout the entire post-Soviet space. In all countries, wherever I have been, elections are held, as a rule, in such a solemn atmosphere. Belarus is also following these traditions here, and we are happy about it," he said. - The turnout is good. Heads of precinct election commissions, members of precinct election commissions tell us that the elections are organized and dignified.

International reaction

This year's voting was observed by 486 international observers from 52 countries, as well as 44 thousand Belarusian observers. Nevertheless, this year, as well as at the last parliamentary elections, there were no observers from the OSCE ODIHR. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry sent an invitation to the organization, but it refused under the pretext that the invitation allegedly came late.

It should be noted that the OSCE ODIHR has repeatedly applied double standards in the final reports on the results of the elections - and this shows the bias of the mission participants, who come to the elections with a known ready-made statement and negative assessments. The same cannot be said about the observers present now in Belarus.

The campaign of pressure and disinformation, which the Westerners have built around our countries, cannot but cause indignation, says Sergei Lebedev.

- The population of Belarus has not succumbed to the calls of these provocateurs - I can't call them otherwise - who have tried and continue to try to destabilize the situation in the country," he says.

By the way, Europe has managed to recognize the elections in the republic illegitimate without waiting for the official results. January 22, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the EU not to recognize the voting results in the country.

Alexander Lukashenko assessed the possible non-recognition of the elections in the republic by the Western countries at a press conference.

- Nothing will happen in our country. Whether you recognize these elections in the European Union or not <...>. This is a matter of taste. Believe me, it's absolutely, as you say, no matter," he said.

The U.S. reaction, on the other hand, has not been so clear-cut so far. In mid-January, former head of the State Department Anthony Blinken, who held this post in the administration of Joe Biden, said that he did not recognize the upcoming elections in Belarus and considered them "wrong. However, January 24, the State Department removed the statement of the former Secretary of State from its official website.

Belarusians are worried about the future of their country

- Young lady, are you a journalist? Have you come to cover the elections? - asks a cab driver, standing at a traffic light.

- Yes, I am a journalist. Are you going to vote? - I ask.

- Of course, I'm for Batka. And many of us are in favor of him. There may be some dissatisfied people, but it's all very small and local. The main thing is that our country is in order, our cities are clean. Everything is organized. Maybe there are those who are dissatisfied with salaries, but it's not just a matter of politics," said the cab driver.

Streets in Minsk are indeed very clean - and not only on voting days. The very order in the country was also reflected in the work of polling stations: there was no crush or fuss, despite the large number of those wishing to vote.

This year, Belarus paid special attention to security measures before the elections. From January 20, the personnel of internal affairs bodies and troops were transferred to a reinforced version of duty. In addition, in November 2024, the services held a series of exercises to guarantee the safety of citizens. Also, polling stations in the republic were equipped with panic buttons and video surveillance systems, and since January 20, they have been under round-the-clock protection. At the same time, the enhanced security measures were not particularly felt at the polling stations, the atmosphere was calm.

Such security measures are explained not only by possible attempts to destabilize the situation on the part of the West, but also by the need not to repeat the scenario of 2020 In August 2020, the elections were marked by protests after the official announcement of the results. Then Alexander Lukashenko won, and the second place was taken by Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who did not recognize the results and left the country.

This year, everyone realized that the fate of the country should be decided at polling stations, not in the streets, said "Izvestia" presidential candidate, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus Oleg Gaidukevich.

- If you want some changes, you want to cast your vote, so that something depends on you - no streets, only polling stations. So people understand the responsibility, and they go to the polls to express their opinion on how they want to see the future of the country. This is gratifying. <...> Trump has suspended funding for the radical opposition, and without money they are unable to do anything. If they are deprived of funding, all opposition activity will be over in a week," he said.

The high turnout at the voting only confirms that the citizens of Belarus are now extremely interested in the future of their country, experts say. This is due to the situation in neighboring Ukraine, among other things.

- We are repeating the voting of 2015, when the society was shocked by the events in Ukraine, in Donbass. Then the society rallied around Lukashenko as a leader, who guarantees stability and peace. It is the same now. Lukashenko embodies the guarantee of peace and stability. Hence such a turnout and such a rally around him," says "Izvestia" director of the Center for European Integration Yuri Shevtsov.

Among other things, Oleg Gaidukevich stressed, this is why one should not expect any radical destabilization in the country after the current elections.