News on the topic: local council elections-2010
18.02.2010 Mahiliou: boundaries of election constituencies haven’t been set so far
Andrei Dzvihun, pretender to candidate for the local Soviet of Deputies, chairperson of the Leninski district organization of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party Hramada, lodged a complaint with the Mahiliou oblast election commission.
18.02.2010 Websites of executive commissions present too little information about elections
In the Homel oblast ,the authorities introduced to their websites columns dedicated to the elections to the local Soviets of Deputies. However, it is too early to say that one can receive complete official information at the websites of all district executive committees in the Homel oblast.
18.02.2010 Vitsebsk: practical implementation of ideas voiced by Secretary of Central Election Commission
On 16 February, a seminar-counsel for Chairpersons and Secretaries of territorial and constituency election commissions and Chairperson of ideological and personnel departments of the district and city executive commissions of the Vitsebsk oblast was held in Vitsebsk.
17.02.2010 State media during election campaign: expert opinion
Assessing the role of mass media in covering the election campaigns, Lidziya Yarmoshyna, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission, stated that ‘state mass media have the right to criticize opposition candidates during elections’, but ‘forgot’ to add that pro-governmental candidates also can be subject to similar critique with the aim of creating equal conditions for all candidates.
17.02.2010 Hrodna: psychological pressurization of democratic candidates
Mass-scale pressurization of the democratic activists who participate in the local elections is observed in Hrodna oblast. As stated by Aleh Ramashkevich, member of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party Hramada, the authorities tried to persuade the member of his initiative group Yauhen Siankevich to leave the group. Chairperson of the territorial election commission Siarhei Chykun, Deputy Chairperson of the Berastavitsa district executive committee, came to the village of Alekshytsy, where pensioner Siankevich lived and proposed that the latter should leave the commission. Yauhen Siankevich refused to do it.
17.02.2010 Ivan Kruk appeals against non-registration of his initiative group
The Astravets district territorial commission on elections to the Astravets district Soviet of Deputies refused to register Ivan Kruk’s initiative group established for collection of signatures in support of his candidacy at the Shkolnaya election constituency #2.
17.02.2010 Barysau: tax inspection is getting more active during elections
On 15 February Siarhei Salash, leader of the Barysau organization of the Belarusian Popular Front Party, filed with the appropriate election commission an application for nomination of economist Zmitser Babitski, expert of CASE-Belarus, a candidate to deputies of the Barysau district Soviet of Deputies of the 26th Convocation at election constituency #15.
17.02.2010 Vitsebsk oblast: number of women in election commissions considerably exceeds the number of men
The territorial commissions in the Vitsebsk oblast consist predominantly of women. In particular, there are three women (23%) in the Vitsebsk oblast election commission, 29 women (56%) – in the commissions in the towns and cities of oblast subordination, 21 (70%) – in the towns of district subordination, 177 (66%) – in the district commissions, 81 (81%) – in the settlement commissions and 1 237 (81%) – in the village commissions. A clear tendency can be observed: the smaller a settlement – the larger the number of women in the commissions.
17.02.2010 Lidziya Yarmoshyna: more than 3.5 thousands of initiative groups have applied for registration with election commissions
According to the information voiced at the republican seminar dedicated to the role of media in ensuring the constitutional rights of citizens during election campaigns on 16 February by Lidziya Yarmoshyna, Chairperson of the Central Commission on holding elections and national referenda, more than 3 500 initiative groups have applied for registration with election commissions in Belarus.
17.02.2010 Orsha officials continue violating election legislation
On 6 February 2010, the Vitsebsk oblast executive committee and the Presidium of the Vitsebsk Soviet of Deputies issued a ruling on formation of constituency election commissions. Eight of thee established commissions are situated in the town of Orsha. Still, the local state press (the Arshanskaya Hazeta newspaper) has published information about only two of them, though 11 days have already passed since the formation, and Article 34 of the Election Code requires that the decisions of state organs on formation of commissions be published within seven-days’ term.
17.02.2010 Horki: administration of district election commission and constituency election commissions works in district executive committee
In Horki, the administrations of the constituency commissions on elections to the Mahiliou oblast Soviet of Deputies and the district election commission on elections to the Horki district Soviet of Deputies consists of the persons whose stable place of work is the Horki district executive committee, and Ina Kurtsina, secretary of this commission, is Deputy Chairperson of the education department of the Horki DEC .
17.02.2010 Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections: first stage of the formation of territorial and district election commissions. Report
According to article 34 of The Electoral Code of the Republic of Belarus, territorial election commissions on the election of deputies of local Soviets are formed by the presidiums of oblast, Minsk city Soviet of deputies and oblast, Minsk city executive committees, composed of 9-13 commission-members. The mentioned commissions are formed no later than 85 days before the elections.
16.02.2010 Barysau district: created constituencies fail to meet legal requirements
Decision #3 of the Barysau district election commission, published the state-owned newspaper Adzinstva, concerns changes of the boundaries of the election constituencies #9 and #10 on the elections to the Barysau district Soviet of Deputies of the 26th Convocations and, correspondingly, changes in the number of electors in these constituencies.
16.02.2010 Election campaign: numbers and tendencies of the last week
The weeks started with sizing up the results of forming of the constituency commissions on elections to the oblast Soviets of Deputies and the Minsk city Soviet of Deputies and holding the first sittings of these commissions. During the week the information on dismissals of claims against non-inclusion of nominees in territorial commissions was summed up. Simultaneously, political parties lodged with courts new complaints – against non-inclusion of their nominees to constituency election commissions, and the local authorities issued rulings on determining the places banned for picketing on collection of signatures in support of pretenders to candidates.
16.02.2010 Hrodna: judicial absurd
The Hrodna oblast court dismissed the claim of the Hrodna oblast organization of the Belarusian Social Democratic Hramada against the decision of the Hrodna oblast executive committee and the Presidium of the Hrodna oblast Soviet of Deputies of 8 February, by which the BSDH representative Uladzimir Khilmanovich hadn’t been included in the Limozh constituency election commission #6.
