{"id":187126,"date":"2026-05-12T10:36:57","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T07:36:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/187126\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T11:35:57","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T08:35:57","slug":"ddos-attack-disrupts-launch-of-coordination-council-election","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/187126\/","title":{"rendered":"DDoS attack disrupts launch of Coordination Council election"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Platform for voting at Coordiation Council online election\n <\/div>\n \n
\n (Screenshot by Pozirk)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

May 12, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> A massive DDoS attack disrupted the launch of the opposition Coordination Council election scheduled to start at 10 pm on May 11, Alena Prychod\u017aka of the Council’s election commission said in a video message posted on Telegram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The activist described the attack on the online voting platform as “unprecedented” in scale, adding that all online activities were blocked. Developers from Pavie\u0142 Libier\u2019s team are currently testing the platform for stability, she noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The platform\u2019s web address has been kept secret for security reasons, with the link posted yesterday evening on the Telegram channel of Belarusian opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As many as 174 candidates representing nine political groups are running in the elections for the 80-member Coordination Council scheduled for May 11-17. Belarusian authorities branded all groups as \u201cextremist\u201d in an attempt to disrupt the voting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Coordination Council is a non-governmental body established in 2020 to facilitate a democratic transfer of power in Belarus. The Council originally had 64 core members with a seven-member leadership board. Amid the post-election crackdown in Belarus, many of the Council\u2019s members were arrested or forced into exile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2022 and 2023, the Coordination Council was re-established abroad as a body consisting of representatives of various pro-democracy groups in exile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In May 2024, the Council held its first direct online elections, with more than 6,700 citizens of Belarus reportedly taking part in them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With 28 seats, Pavie\u0142 \u0141atu\u0161ka and the Movement for Freedom currently represent the Council\u2019s largest political group. \u0141atu\u0161ka is the deputy head of the opposition transition cabinet led by Cichano\u016dskaja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian authorities are investing heavily in efforts to disrupt the Coordination Council election, Libier noted last week. The opposition structures are under massive attack, unlike during the 2024 election, which was marked only by some DDoS attacks, he told journalists. Rights defenders also reported pressure on the candidates\u2019 families in Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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