Baranavichy observer asks CEC to address violations at polling station

Observer Siarhei Housha sent a complaint to the CEC Chairperson Lidziya Yarmoshyna to appeal against violations of the Electoral Code by members of the polling station election commission No. 43 in Baranavichy, which was chaired by Mikalai Zhukouski.

The applicant says that on March 23 he was accredited as an observer at polling station No. 43. After the voting was over, the election commission was to start counting the unused ballots and invalidate them, but it was not done in a timely manner.

Furthermore, the final report has an extremely high percentage of home voting turnout – 423 persons (24.85% of all voters). The observers present at the polling station deemed this as falsification.

“Now we could see why the chairman of the commission did not tell the observers the number of home voters during the day and did not show voters’ lists,” the observer said.

Voting at home, says Siarhei Housha in his complaint, was carried out by only 2 members of the election commission with one portable box, who during approximately 3-4 hours let 423 citizens cast their ballots. Meanwhile, for a lot of time the box was at the polling station in front of the commission members and observers.

Siarhei Housha also notes that at the end of the counting of votes the final protocol was not posted and the observers were unable to make copies of it.

The independent observer wrote about the electoral violations during the vote counting and handed the complaint to the chairman of the commission, who at first refused to take it, and then reluctantly took, but contrary to the law, failed to arrange its consideration by the commission and did not issue a decision. Therefore Siarhei Housha says he is not sure that his statement was forwarded to the higher territorial commission. In this regard, the observer asks the Central Election Commission to investigate the above facts and take action against violators of the Electoral Code. He also seeks examination of the legitimacy of home voting at the polling station.

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