Yarmoshyna tells about presidential election and ban on boycotts

On Wednesday, the “house of Representatives” adopted a draft law at second reading to amend the electoral legislation. In accordance with the amendments, members of “parliament” will be elected in one round and election boycott calls will be forbidden, Interfax news agency reports.

The bill is expected to be approved by the “council of the republic” and signed into law by Lukashenka.

“The draft law is supposed to improve the legal regulation of the electoral process,” chairperson of the Central Election Committee (CIC) Lidzia Yarmoshyna said introducing the draft law before the first reading.

Parliamentary “elections” will have one round and MPs will be elected by simple majority, according to her.

“The amendment was caused by the practice. With rare exceptions, we didn't have second rounds of parliamentary elections,” the CIC head said. Yarmoshyna emphasised that it wouldn't be applied to presidential “elections” that would have two rounds.

Yarmoshyna said that the amendments propose to ban calling for the breakdown, cancellation or postponing elections or referendums.

“It [a ban on boycotting] was caused by the negative practice of carrying our electoral campaigns by certain candidates,” she said noting that it was widely used during the latest electoral campaigns. The CIC head said the ban on calling for a boycott would be applied to “all participants of the electoral campaign.”

Yarmoshyna said that the order of financing electoral campaigns would be changed in accordance with the draft law. Funds of presidential candidates will be increased from 3,000 to 9,000 basic units [about $130,000 – Interfax], the CIC head says. Funds of parliamentary candidates won't change. They can spend 1,000 basic units [$14,000 – Interfax] on their campaigns.

The presidential campaign in Belarus will begin in August 2015, the CIC head says.

“August 2015 is the start of the electoral campaign. The election is supposed to be held not later than November 20, 2015,” Lidzia Yarmoshyna explained.

We remind that the CIC head made several statements against any activity with the aim of boycotting elections because she found it immoral and irresponsible.