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November 28 – December 4, 2016

Belarusian authorities test society for extending presidential term

The situation has not changed

Central Election Commission Chairman Lidziya Yarmoshyna said that the electoral system could be changed without a referendum. Extending the term of office of elected bodies in Belarus, including the president, is not yet a mainstream topic in a public debate. Except for the ‘Tell the Truth!’ campaign, opposition groups have ignored the LDPB initiative. Perhaps the proposal by the party leaders loyal to the authorities was an attempt to initiate a public debate about adding powers to the president and to test people’s response. Most likely, the Belarusian authorities are aware of the low support for such an initiative in society, but, nevertheless they would like to measure the degree of polarisation in society and the level of possible politicisation, should such an initiative be implemented.

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Once a week, in coordination with a group of prominent Belarusian analysts, we provide analytical commentaries on the most topical and relevant issues, including the behind-the-scenes processes occurring in Belarus. These commentaries are available in Belarusian, Russian, and English.
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