You're reading: Politico: In Belarus, Lukashenko faces a female challenge

Politico: In Belarus, Lukashenko faces a female challenge

Published Aug. 1, 2020. Updated Aug. 1 at 2:48 am

An opposition supporter holds a placard depicting Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko and reading "Go away!" during a protest in Minsk on July 14, 2020, after the country's central electoral commission refused to register the main rivals to Alexander Lukashenko as candidates for the country's presidential election in August.

Photo by AFP

There’s little doubt that Belarusian President Aleksander Lukashenko will win a sixth term in elections on August 9 — but he’s facing an unexpectedly tough fight. Presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has galvanized a normally small and disorganized opposition movement into a powerful challenge against the authoritarian leader.