Tame MPs obey Lukashenka: Presidential election-2015 to take place on October, 11
The presidential election will take place on October, 11 2015. The decision was made by the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus on 30 June, the final day of the parliament’s seventh session.
Earlier, it was expected that the election would be held on November, 15.
The date of October, 11 was recommended by the Central Election Commission, and president Lukashenka expressed confidence that Belarusian MPs would support the proposal. The decision on the appointment of the election date was made at the closing session of the 7th session of the House of Representatives. Independent experts put the date transfer down to the country’s economic problems.
The registration of initiative groups to collect signatures for nomination of candidates should be finished no later than July 22. The collection of signatures will last from July 23 to August 21, and the registration of presidential candidates should be completed no later than 15 September.
Apart from the incumbent head of state, at least seven persons may take part in the presidential race (Anatol Lyabedzka, Chairman of the United Civic Party of Belarus; Syarhei Haydukevich, Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party; Syarhei Kalyakin, Head of leftist party ‘Fair World’; Tatsiana Karatkevich, coalition ‘People’s Referendum’, Alena Anisim, the Belarusian Language Society; Yuri Shulgan, an unemployed and non-party man. A number of parties and associations are ready to collect signatures for political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich, who was a presidential candidate in 2010.
