The last time Belarus staged a presidential election in 2020, authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko was declared the winner with 80% of the vote. That triggered cries of fraud, months of protests and a harsh crackdown with thousands of arrests.

Belarus is set for a presidential election on Sunday, with five candidates on the ballot but no real contest. Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, is expected to secure another five-year term, a result the

Exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya criticizes Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's pre-election release of political prisoners as a deceitful tactic to appeal to the West. She urges the cessation of repression and the release of all prisoners,

Five candidates' names will appear on the ballot for a presidential election in Belarus on Sunday, but for the past 31 years there has only been one winner. In power since 1994, Alexander Lukashenko is assured of a new five-year term in a vote that the exiled opposition describes as a sham.