‘A ritual for a dictator’: Lukashenko critics decry Belarus election
by Pjotr Sauer Russian affairs reporter from World news | The Guardian on (#6TRWF)
Longtime president and Putin ally has silenced media and criminalised dissent as he eyes seventh term
On Sunday, five names will feature on the ballot in Belarus's presidential election, but the outcome is a foregone conclusion: Alexander Lukashenko's 31-year reign is poised to continue in the carefully managed vote, granting the dictator his seventh term in power.
The elections, described by the opposition as a farce", come four and a half years after Belarus's previous presidential vote, which sparked nationwide protests over allegations of vote rigging and was met with brutal repression.
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