Lukashenko officially declared winner in Belarusian presidential elections

MINSK -- Belarusian Central Election Commission on Monday officially declared Alexander Lukashenko's victory in the latest presidential elections with 86.82 percent of the votes.

For other candidates, Sergei Syrankov received 3.21 percent, followed by Oleg Gaidukevich (2.02 percent), Anna Kanopatskaya (1.86 percent) and Alexander Khizhnyak (1.74 percent). Around 3.60 percent of voters voted against all candidates.

The presidential elections were held in Belarus on Jan 26. The turnout was 85.69 percent.

Under Belarusian law, a presidential candidate who secures more than 50 percent of the vote is declared the winner.

Lukashenko was first elected president of Belarus in 1994. He was later re-elected in 2001, 2006, 2010, 2015 and 2020.