At Stake in this Election:

• All 110 seats of the Belarussian Chamber of Representatives

Municipal elections will occur concurrently (as per Article 56 of the Election Code).

Government Structure:

• Chief of State: President A Lukashenko (since 20 July 1994)
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Roman GOLOVCHENKO (since 4 June 2020)
• Assembly: bicameral National Assembly (Нацыянальны сход) with a 64-seat Council of the Republic (Савет Рэспублікі) and a 110-seat Chamber of Representatives (Палата Прадстаўнікоў)

Electoral System:

• The President is directly elected by absolute majority vote in up to two rounds. The President may serve up to two 5-year terms.
• The Prime Minister is nominated by the President and confirmed by the National Assembly.
• In the Council of the Republic, 56 members are indirectly elected by regional councils and 8 members are appointed by the President. All members serve 5-year terms.
• In the Chamber of Representatives, all 110 members are directly elected from single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in up to two rounds. All members serve 5-year terms.

Last Election:

In the 2019 snap legislative election, independent candidates won a majority of seats (89), and five parties won the remainder. Voter turnout was 77%.

New/Unique in this Election:

The constitutional amendments approved by the referendum of 2022  introduced changes including: mandating the holding of parliamentary elections on the last Sunday of February; increasing the term of parliamentary deputies from four to five years; extending the age limit and residence qualifications for presidential candidates; limiting presidency to two terms; prohibiting foreign financing of elections; constitutionalizing the establishment, mandate, and term of the Central Election Commission; and guaranteeing persons with disabilities equal opportunities to exercise their human rights. The Election Code was amended in February 2023 to harmonize it with the 2022 constitutional amendments, as well as to introduce some additional changes related to the system of election commissions and procedure for the formation of electoral districts; prohibiting those who hold foreign citizenship from running for the National Assembly; and abolishment of the voter turnout requirement for recognizing elections to the House of Representatives.

Key Deadlines:

• Candidate filing deadline: 30 January 2024
• Voter registration deadline: Voter registration is passive and residence-based.

Main Parties in this Election:

Most candidates run as independents.

• Communist Party / Коммунистическая партия Беларуси
  • Seats won in the last election: 11 out of 110
• Republican Party of Labor and Justice / Республиканская партия труда и справедливости
  • Seats won in the last election: 6 out of 110
• Liberal Democratic Party / Либерально-демократическая партия Беларуси
  • Seats won in the last election: 1 out of 110
• Belaya Rus / Белорусская партия "Белая Русь" (BR)
  • Seats won in the last election: 0 out of 110

Population and Registered Voters:

• Population: 9,228,070 (2022 est.)
• Registered Voters: 6,815,667 (2022)

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 4,979,110 (2022 est.)
• CEDAW Status: Signed 17 July 1980, Ratified 4 February 1981
• Gender Quota:  No
• Female Candidates in this election: Yes
• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 44 out of 110 (40%) in the Chamber of Representatives and 15 out of 60 (25%) in the Council of the Republic
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.808, Very High, Rank 60 (2021)
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Not available

Disability Data:

• CRPD Status: Signed 28 September 2015, Ratified 29 November 2016
• Projected population with a disability: 1,476,491 (2022 est.)

IFES Resources:

• Does IFES have a presence in Belarus: Yes, programming
• Election Access: Yes
• Election Judgements: Yes, 4 resources