Cases of forced voting registered in Mahiliou
Students and residents of dormitories in Mahiliou are being forced to vote early, local observers say.
Observer Nadzeya Shkadun working at the Mahiliou polling station No. 42 reports that students are voting under duress. At this polling station, 144 students of the Kuliashou Mahiliou State University voted on the first day of the early voting campaign, and 92 more people cast their ballots on the second day.
Similar cases of forced voting were recorded in the hostel of Babushkina Krynka Ltd., where the polling station No. 101 is located. Observers Aliaksandr Shachanok and Viktar Boldzin say that dormitory residents are forced to vote by the hostel administration. 108 people voted there during the first day, and 122 on the second.
The same cases are reported by observers at Mahiliou polling stations Nos. 3 and 4. According to them, administration officials have been using coercion to make voters residing in the hostel of the Strommashina plant and students of the Mahiliou State Polytechnic College go the polls.
A curious case occurred at polling station No. 72. A student lost the ballot after he walked inside the voting booth.
The student said that he came to check in, as he was forced to do it in the dorm. He put his signature when receiving the ballot and said he had done what he had been asked to do. He notes that he was forced to check in and not to vote, and he did so in a literal sense.
In other polling stations, where there are no dormitories, observers record a much lower turnout.
