United Civic Party\'s presidential hopeful applies to election authorities for registration of his nomination group

One more pro-democratic presidential hopeful, economist Yaraslaw Ramanchuk of the United Civic Party, on Thursday applied to the central election commission for the registration of his nomination group, BelaPAN reports.

After filing the application, Mr. Ramanchuk told reporters that his group, set up to collect the required 100,000 voter signatures for him to get access to the ballot in the coming presidential election, included 1,423 people. He said that he would submit an additional list of 100 people on September 24.

Mr. Ramanchuk expressed confidence that his supporters would gather the required amount of signatures.

“The main principle in the formation of the group was voluntary participation, with every volunteer submitting his personal application,” he said. “I am sure that there are no accidental people in it. My group features both experienced signature collectors capable of gathering more than 1000 signatures on their own and novices.”

Mr. Ramanchuk said that he was “a complete contrast” to incumbent President Alyaksandr Lukashenka. “He symbolizes all old and spent things and I symbolize new and promising things,” he said.

The nomination group will try to reach out to all those who advocate changes,” he said, adding that the people accounted for “at least 50 percent of the population.”

Earlier in the day, Uladzimir Nyaklyayew, a poet-turned-politician who leads the “Tell the Truth!” campaign, as well as Uladzimir Pravalski, a small business owner resident in Vitsyebsk, and Natallya Starykava, a junior nurse at a health center in the Homyel district, applied for the registration of their nomination groups.

The central election commission has already granted registration to the nomination group of presidential hopeful Viktar Tsyareshchanka. The 60-year-old economist’s group thus became the first nomination group to be allowed to collect ballot-access signatures for the election.

A total of eight persons have confirmed their plans to run for President since the House of Representatives last week set the presidential vote for December 19. These eight include: Syarhey Haydukevich, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party; Uladzimir Nyaklyayew, leader of the “Tell the Truth!” campaign; Ryhor Kastusyow, deputy chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front; Andrey Sannikaw, a former deputy foreign minister and leader of an opposition group called European Belarus; Yaraslaw Ramanchuk, deputy chairman of the United Civic Party; Yury Hlushakow, deputy chairman of the Belarusian Party of the Greens; Vital Rymashewski, co-chairman of the Belarusian Christian Democracy party; and economist Viktar Tsyareshchanka.

The registered nomination groups are to start collecting ballot-access signatures on September 30.