The 2020 belarusian presidential election

This note reports on a regular presidential contest in a stable authoritarian regime that turned unexpectedly dramatic and consequential. The official results followed the pattern established in the previous 20 years of unfree elections in which President Lukashenko prevailed with a massive majority of the (presumably rigged) popular vote. But, for the first time ever, major doubts prevailed about whether he really was the main vote-getter at the polls. In fact, many citizens believe that he would have been badly defeated had the elections been fairly conducted. The elections were followed by several months of vigorous mass protest that undermined the international legitimacy of the regime and forced the dictator to promise major political reforms. The protests were ultimately crashed with brutal force, and the political concessions promised by the regime are not in the popularly demanded direction. Yet, the electoral process triggered significant political change in Belarus at multiple levels and advanced nation building.