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Voting begins in Belarus election Voting ends in Belarus election
(about 1 hour later)
Voters in Belarus are going to the polls in parliamentary elections which the authorities say will be the most free in the country's history. People in Belarus have voted in a parliamentary election which President Alexander Lukashenko says he expects to lead to better relations with the West.
Around 70 opposition candidates have been allowed to run for parliament, which is dominated by President Alexander Lukashenko's supporters. Past polls have been seriously flawed, and Mr Lukashenko has been condemned by the US as the last dictator in Europe.
But correspondents say the poll is unlikely to challenge the president. In a bid to appease his critics, the president ordered some opponents to be freed from prison and allowed around 70 opposition candidates to stand.
Mr Lukashenko, who has been in office since 1994, has been condemned by the US as the last dictator in Europe. But opposition groups said they were not allowed to monitor voting properly.
But he has insisted that the vote will meet democratic standards and has said he hopes some opposition candidates win seats. The leader of the Communist Party, Sergei Kalyakin, said advance voting which began on Tuesday had also given the government an opportunity to cheat.
All 110 seats of the lower house of parliament in Belarus are currently occupied by politicians who back Mr Lukashenko. The chairwoman of the Central Election Commission, Lidziya Yarmoshyna, denied the accusations and said turnout had reached 59.7% by Sunday afternoon.
The opposition has united into two blocs for the election, having had no success in the 2004 poll. Most opposition groups boycotted the previous election in 2000. The first unofficial results are expected early on Monday.
The BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Minsk says opposition posters have been on display in the capital but that "suggestions that the regime has foresworn its authoritarian ways may be premature".
Analysts have said the election campaign has been lacklustre, and that opposition parties have had little or no access to the mass media.
'Fraudulent' polls'Fraudulent' polls
class="" href="/1/hi/world/europe/7639562.stm">President's farming roots Hundreds of European observers are in Belarus to monitor the poll. After voting in Sunday's election for the lower chamber of parliament, the House of Representatives, President Lukashenko said he hoped that if the election went smoothly, "the West will recognise Belarus".
They have expressed concern over some electoral procedures, including the opening of polling stations in the week before the election, which is viewed as a vote-rigging technique. You wouldn't have seen the last dictator had you not come here President Alexander Lukashenko class="" href="/1/hi/world/europe/7639562.stm">President's farming roots
Observers do not yet know how much access they will have to the actual vote counting process. "Dictator? Last dictator? Fine, let it be so," he told reporters, referring to the label applied by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in 2005.
"You wouldn't have seen the last dictator had you not come here."
Before the election, Mr Lukashenko, who has been in office since 1994, insisted that the vote would meet democratic standards and that he hoped some opposition candidates would win seats.
All 110 seats of the House of Representatives in Belarus are currently occupied by politicians who back Mr Lukashenko.
The opposition has united into two blocs for the election, having had no success in the 2004 poll. Most opposition groups boycotted the previous election in 2000.
The BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Minsk says opposition posters were on display in the capital ahead of the vote, but that suggestions the government has foresworn its authoritarian ways may be premature.
Analysts have said the election campaign was lacklustre, and that opposition parties had little or no access to the mass media.
As he cast his vote, opposition leader Alexandr Kozulin said he was taking part "to show the international community that the elections are fraudulent".As he cast his vote, opposition leader Alexandr Kozulin said he was taking part "to show the international community that the elections are fraudulent".
He said he had "a lot of facts and evidence" to prove the claim.He said he had "a lot of facts and evidence" to prove the claim.
Correspondents say Mr Lukashenko has been trying to improve relations with the West as his ties cool with neighbouring Russia. Correspondents say Mr Lukashenko has been trying to improve relations with the West as his country's ties cool with Russia.
European and American diplomats have suggested that sanctions against Belarusian companies could be lifted if the election is conducted well. European and US diplomats have suggested that sanctions against Belarusian companies could be lifted if the election is conducted well.
Mr Kozulin said this would mean the Belarus government would have to introduce "concrete actions and real changes for the democratisation of Belarusian society".Mr Kozulin said this would mean the Belarus government would have to introduce "concrete actions and real changes for the democratisation of Belarusian society".