Belarus sees 7.81 pct turnout on 1st day of early voting

MINSK, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Belarusian Central Election Commission (CEC) said Tuesday 7.81 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots on the first of early voting in the presidential elections.

The turnout in the Brest region stood at 8.95 percent, 7.45 percent in the Vitebsk region, 7.01 percent in the Gomel region, 6.08 percent in the Grodno region, 8.52 percent in the Minsk region, 7.25 percent in the Mogilev region, and 8.54 percent in the city of Minsk, the CEC said on Tuesday.

Throughout the country 5,325 polling stations have been organized for elections. The number of voters stands at about 6.9 million.

Five candidates, including incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko, have been registered for the presidential elections.

The main voting day is Jan. 26.