Chairman of the regional election commission Dmitry Khoma spoke about the preliminary election results in the Vitebsk region

In the Dvina region, voter turnout exceeded 75%, and in some districts, it reached over 80%. Dmitry Khoma, Chairman of the Regional Election Commission, spoke about the preliminary results of the elections to the local Councils and the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus at a meeting in the Vitebsk Region Media Center.

Dmitry Khoma gave a positive assessment of the electoral campaign, which was conducted under new rules. He emphasized that a single voting day is not a Belarusian know-how, but a practice used in many countries around the world.

— It is easier to organize. On the other hand, there is a certain electoral fatigue among voters when such campaigns occur quite often, — Dmitry Khoma stressed. — Of course, this experience is new for all of us. Yesterday, the commissions encountered certain difficulties, and the vote counting was quite complex and lengthy. This means that the time spent on it has increased somewhat. But for voters, it is undoubtedly convenient to make their choice on one day.

Preliminary results of the electoral campaign were announced. In Vitebsk region, there were over 842 thousand voters on the list for the elections to the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus. Of these, 76.27% voted. For the elections to the local Councils, the turnout was slightly lower in percentage terms – 75.63% out of more than 856 thousand voters. At the same time, there are regions where public activity was particularly high – for example, Beshenkovichsky and Dubrovensky districts. There, the turnout exceeded 80%, reported Dmitry Khoma.

It should be noted that young people participating in the elections for the first time demonstrated a responsible attitude towards their civic duty. In our region, there are over 19 thousand such young men and women. And more than 80% of them came to vote.

At the press conference, Dmitry Khoma read out the lists of deputies elected to the House of Representatives and the Regional Council. However, he once again emphasized that all information is preliminary. The final election results will be known when the Vitebsk Regional Election Commission holds its meeting. It is scheduled for the evening of Tuesday, February 27. The Central Election Commission is expected to summarize the results and announce them on Friday.

According to Dmitry Khoma, despite the difficulties associated with holding a unified voting day in our country, the election commissions at all levels received significantly fewer citizen appeals this time than in previous electoral campaigns of recent years.

— The regional commission has received only ten appeals so far, — he explained. — Three citizens appealed the results of the registration of initiative groups. One citizen defended his right to register an initiative group in the Vitebsk Regional Court. The court upheld the decision of the regional election commission. Two citizens appealed the decisions of election commissions (one district, the second city) to refuse registration as candidates for deputies.

Some needed clarification on how to vote at their actual place of residence, rather than at their registration address. There were also reports that voters had not received postcards inviting them to the polling station and informational materials about the candidates for deputies. However, after verification, two out of three such cases were not confirmed.

— These are isolated incidents that did not affect the voting results in the Vitebsk region in any way, — emphasized Dmitry Khoma.

He highly praised the level of informational support for the electoral campaign, the activity of the media and the candidates themselves, the vast majority of whom took the opportunity to post their programs on the websites of city (district) executive committees.

— I think all citizens had full access to information, — noted Dmitry Khoma. — And the statements of individual voters that they did not know who to vote for, today perhaps speak more about low electoral culture or unwillingness to get to know the candidates better.

Source: vitebsk-region.gov.by