Nomination of a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus by citizens is carried out by an initiative group of voters (hereinafter - the initiative group) in the number of not less than 100 persons.

To register the initiative group, the person having the intention to be nominated as candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus shall, not later than 85 days before the elections, submit the following documents to the Central Commission:

a written application on registration of the initiative group indicating the surname, name and patronymic, date of birth, position (occupation), place of work and residence, term of residence in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, party membership of the person having the intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus;

copies of pages from the passport, confirming the citizenship of the Republic of Belarus and registration in the territory of the Republic of Belarus of the person having an intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus;

list of members of the initiative group indicating the head of the group and coordinators in districts, cities of regional subordination, in-the-city districts if the collecting of signatures is carried out in their territory.The list of members of the initiative group shall indicate the surname, name and patronymic, date of birth, place of residence, serial number and number of the passport of the Republic of Belarus in relation to each member of the initiative group.The surname, name and patronymic of the person to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus are indicated in this list.The list of members of the initiative group is submitted in printed and electronic form.

The person having an intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus submits to the Central Commission documents mentioned in part two of this Article and produces the passport of the citizen of the Republic of Belarus.The documents may be submitted to the Central Commission by the authorized representative of the person having an intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus exercising his powers on the basis of a notarized power of attorney or a power of attorney certified in the order established by clause 3 and part one of clause 4 of Article 186 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus.

The person having an intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus, or a head of the initiative group is entitled to introduce changes in the documents submitted for registration of the initiative group not later than one day before the Central Commission considers the issue on registration of the initiative group, as well as to familiarize himself with the materials of verification of those documents.

The Central Commission considers the application within five days form the day or its receipt, registers the initiative group and issues the members of the initiative group the relevant certificates and signature lists for gathering signatures of voters in support of the person proposed for nomination as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter a signature list).The registration of the initiative group shall be denied when the requirements of this Code are violated.Rejection to register the initiative group may be appealed against within three days from the day of taking the decision on rejection to the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus by the person having intention to be nominated as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus.The Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus considers the complaint within three days.

The signature list indicates the surname, name and patronymic, date of birth, post (occupation), place of work and residence, party membership of the person proposed for nomination as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus as well as the surname, name and patronymic of the member of the initiative group who collects signatures, and the registration number of the initiative group.

The signature list shall contain signatures of the voters residing in the territory of only one city of regional subordination, district, and in the cities with districts – of one district.

The voter has the right to sign in support of a person proposed for nomination as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus only once.

The signature list, concerning a voter supporting a person proposed for nomination as a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus, shall indicate the surname, name and patronymic, date of birth, residence, series and number of the passport of the citizen of the Republic of Belarus or details of another document determined by the Central Commission.The data about the voter is to be handwritten on the signature list.The elector puts, by his own hand, the date of signing and his signature on the signature list.Signatures are enumerated.

Participation of administration of an organization in gathering signatures as well as enforcement during the gathering of signatures and rewarding of voters for putting their signatures is not allowed.Violation of these requirements may serve as the basis for rejection to register or revocation of the decision about registration of the candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus.

Gathering of signatures may be carried out in the form of picketing.Acquisition of the permission for holding the picketing for the mentioned purposes is not required if it is held in places not prohibited by local executive and administrative bodies.

The signature list is verified by a member of the initiative group who has gathered signatures.The member of the initiative group while verifying of the signature list puts the signature and the date of its putting, as well as indicates the surname and initials.

The voters who have nominated a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus have the right prior to depositing signature lists to district, city and district-in-the-city commission on elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus to remove their signatures on the signature lists having submitted an application thereon to the indicated commissions.

Coordinators on districts, cities, city-districts should deposit the signature lists not later than 50 days prior the elections to the district, city, city-district commission on elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus which verifies within ten days the authenticity of signatures of voters on the signature lists and ensures authenticity of the data about the number of such signatures. Not less than 20 percent of voters’ signatures on the signature lists submitted to the relevant commission are subject to verification.

The procedure for the selection of signature lists for verification is determined at a meeting of the respective commission.According to the results of verification of authenticity of the data on the signature lists the signature of a voter may be recognized as authentic or inauthentic.

The signatures of electors and the corresponding data thereabout which have been put on the signature lists but excluded (crossed off) by the member of the initiative group having collected the signatures prior to submission of the signature lists to the relevant commission are not subject to verification and recording if this exclusion has been specially mentioned by him in a written form.The signatures of voters and the corresponding data thereabout shall neither be the subject to verification and recording if there are no data on the signature list about a person nominated as the candidate.

If on the signature list having been submitted to a district, city, district-in-the-city commission there are signatures of the voters residing in the territory of different districts, cities of regional subordination, districts in a city, only signatures which have been collected in the territory of that district, city, district in the city where the commission that have been formed to which the signature list is submitted, are subject to verification and recording. Other signatures are not verified and recorded.

The following signatures shall be considered inauthentic:

fictitious signatures (executed on behalf of non-existing persons and presented as authentic);

signatures of voters executed on behalf of different people by one person or on behalf of one person by another person;

signatures of persons having no electoral right;

signatures of persons who have indicated on the list the data that are contrary to fact;

signatures of voters collected prior to the terms of nomination of candidates;

signatures of voters if the information about them lacks one or several data required by this Code;

signatures of voters if the data have been put on the signature list not in a handwritten way or with a pencil as well as the signatures where the dates of putting the signatures were put not by the own hand of the voter;

all signatures of the voters on the signature list if they are collected by a person who is not a member of the initiative group or if the signature list is not certified by the member of the initiative group or is certified by another member of the initiative group who has not collected those signatures;

signatures of the voters which have been collected with violations of the requirements of part ten of this Article.

In case several signatures of the same voter in support of nomination of the same candidate are detected, only one signature is deemed to be authentic and all other signatures are considered inauthentic.

If the number of inauthentic signatures of voters detected during verification is more than 15 percent of the number of verified signatures, the additional verification of 15 percent of signatures of voters from the number of signatures on signature lists submitted to the relevant commission shall be carried out.

In case the total number of inauthentic signatures of voters detected during verification exceeds 15 percent of the total number of verified signatures on the signature lists, further verification of signatures on the signature lists by the regional, city, district-in-the-city commission is to be terminated, and all the signatures of voters on the submitted lists are not taken into account when determining the results of gathering signatures of voters in the district, city, district in the city.

A regional and the Minsk City commissions on elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus may also verify authenticity of signatures of the voters on the signature lists if required within five days.

On the basis of the protocols of regional, city, district-in-the-city commissions on elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus on establishment of the number of voters who have put on the signature lists their signatures for nomination of a candidate for the President of the Republic of Belarus, and the results of the verification of authenticity of signatures carried out by a regional, the Minsk City commission, the regional, Minsk City commission on elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus shall summarize the results over the region, the city of Minsk, draw up the protocol and immediately send it to the Central Commission.