"We don't miss such important events" – early voting stations in Vitebsk were crowded

Early voting has begun in the country for the election of members of parliament and local councils. Polling stations No. 2 and No. 3, located at Secondary School No. 5 named after Hero of the Soviet Union G.I. Bogomazov in the Oktyabrsky District of Vitebsk, were crowded from the very first hour.

The Lyubashko couple were waiting on the school porch for polling station No. 3 to open:

– We had free time, we were nearby on business, so we decided to vote early. We never miss such an important political event so that our money – the taxpayers' money that goes into organizing the election campaign – is not spent twice, on re-elections. It is better for these funds to be used for other necessary purposes.

Boris Ivanovich and Ekaterina Sulovna approached the selection of candidates for deputies seriously, having carefully studied their biographies. For the head of the family, the most important criterion is where a person started their career:

– If they started from the bottom, it means they are truly close to ordinary people and will definitely not look down on their problems.

For Vladimir Dubinsky, who came to polling station No. 3 after the Lyubashkos, the main thing in a candidate is their personal qualities:

– How do I determine if a person is good? I look at their photo, or rather, at their eyes. It is not for nothing that they say that eyes are the mirror of the soul.

Vladimir Nikolaevich works as a security guard and treats elections responsibly, which is why he came to vote early.

Alla Efremenko, Chairperson of the Precinct Election Commission of polling station No. 3, notes, based on past experience, that the majority of voters come to vote in advance:

– On Sunday, some people work, some have plans to spend time with their families. Those who work the first shift come to the polling station closer to the evening, and those who work the second shift hurry to the opening time to make it to work.

 

Throughout the week, the commission has been collecting applications for home voting and will continue to accept calls until 6 PM on February 25. Among those who will be visited at home on the unified voting day are mainly elderly people and people with disabilities who cannot reach the polling station, noted Alla Efremenko.

According to the Electoral Code, citizens of the Russian Federation permanently residing in Belarus have the right to participate in elections of local council deputies. At polling station No. 3, they constitute only half a percent of the total number of voters. However, they do not have the right to elect deputies to the National Assembly, noted the commission chairperson.

At the neighboring polling station No. 2, young people who were voting for the first time were encountered. Roman Mashkevich used to go to the polls with his parents, but today he is casting his vote independently:

– Why early voting? Because I can't make it on Sunday, I'm working.

The electoral debut today was made by Ilya Kukharchuk, a resident of the Minsk region, who is undergoing compulsory service in the 103rd Vitebsk Guards Airborne Brigade:

– I know some of the candidates for deputies, and I chose based on that.

 

The young people noted that participating in elections for the first time is quite interesting for them, and at the same time, very exciting and responsible. As a memento of this event, they received a gift edition of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus.

Polling stations during early voting from February 20 to 24 are open from 12 PM to 7 PM. On the unified voting day, which will be held for the first time in Belarus on February 25, you can cast your vote for a candidate for deputy of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly and local councils from 8 AM to 8 PM.