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Belarusian presidential election proceeding smoothly — CEC

"I want to emphasize that today our polling stations are working normally," Igor Karpenko said

MINSK, January 23. /TASS/. The Belarusian presidential election is underway, and voting is going off without a hitch, Chairman of the Belarusian Central Election Commission (CEC) Igor Karpenko told reporters.

"People are very actively participating in the electoral process, and the turnout is quite high. This shows that citizens are coming to the polls of their own free will, to make their deliberate choice," he said.

"I want to emphasize that today our polling stations are working normally," Karpenko added.

The CEC chairman also noted that "there are a lot of complaints that polling stations abroad do not exist." "I can tell you that as of now, 15 of our citizens who live abroad have cast their ballots at six polling stations [for voters living abroad] in the regions and the city of Minsk. I remind you that on the single day of voting (February 25, 2024, when members of parliament and local councils were elected - TASS) there were only six such citizens," he continued. "That's why we say that while we did not set up any polling stations abroad, we have created conditions for our citizens, who are not registered in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, but have consular status, to vote at these polling stations. We hope that the border crossings in Brest and Grodno will not create obstacles for our citizens to vote in these regional centers," he concluded.

The early vote will continue through January 25, with January 26 being the main voting day. Five candidates are vying for the post of head of state, including incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko.

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