Meanwhile, a poll taken in Minsk on 17-22 April showed that 54 percent of respondents want presidential elections to be held in 1999, rather than in 2001. The former date is in accordance with the 1994 constitution, which was abolished after the controversial referendum two years later. A poll taken in January and February by the Novak Sociological Laboratory shows President Lukashenka has 39 percent backing, while support for any of his political opponents does not exceed 3 percent. One of the goals was to define the rating of popularity of the political parties in the republic. According to the well-known sociologist Igor Kotlyarov, who was conducting the monitoring, the respondents of more than 1,000 people had little familiarity with the programs of the political parties and were mostly oriented to the parties' names and to the names of the parties' leaders.
Some parties have less popularity because of their absence in the mass media.
But it does not mean that their ideas do not have any chance to become the voice of the people in a moment. Nevertheless, they still need to win the confidence of the citizens of the republic. The following rounded numbers evidence this. It is necessary to notice that the split in the camp of the communists has caused the downturn and has worsened their ratings. Click here for more information.