MINSK — The elections commission in Belarus has registered 10 candidates for next month’s presidential election, including incumbent Alexander Lukashenko.
The registration closed Thursday with a record number of contenders for the post. But although that appeared to indicate growing political activity in the tightly controlled country, opinion surveys cast doubt on whether Lukashenko is in danger of losing his bid for a fourth term in office in the Dec. 19 ballot.
An opinion poll released this month by the Independent Institute of Social-Political and Economic Investigation found support for Lukashenko’s re-election at about 44 percent, not enough to avoid a run-off. But the poll also found support for all other candidates totaling less than 27 percent.
(AP)