Opinions & Interviews

GOMEL, 20 December (BelTA) – The turnout in the coming elections to the local councils of deputies will largely depend on the media activity, Chairperson of the Belarusian Central Election Commission (CEC) Lidia Yermoshina told the media ahead of the seminar with heads and organizers of the local election campaign in Gomel, BelTA has learned.

According to Lidia Yermoshina, the role of the media is very important in elections of all levels. “The turnout depends on the media activity. Therefore, I hope that the media will help motivate voters and encourage them to come to the polls,” she said.

The seminar in Gomel completes the series of the events that have been held in all regional centers of the country. The seminars primarily focus on the issues raised by the election commissions. “As is known, the district commissions have been working since 4 December. The territorial commissions began their work even earlier. At this stage of the election campaign most issues are about the nomination of candidates and the obstacles that might emerge in this process. I would like to note that the Gomel oblast election commission has received no complaints so far,” Lidia Yermoshina stressed.

The CEC head also noted that the activity shown by the political parties and public associations in the region during the formation of the election commissions and the establishment of initiative teams is in keeping with the general trend across the country. “If we compare the figures of the 2014 campaign and the current campaign, the activity of the initiative teams has increased 1.5-2 times,” she said.