Results of the Discussion on the Concept of Transition from a Presidential to a Parliamentary System of Government

During the discussion, 19 participants of the “Personnel Reserve” campaign joined the process and left a total of 149 comments.

Key issues raised:

🔺 Prevention of power concentration in the hands of a single party
🔺 Ensuring genuine representation of different social groups

To address these concerns, proposals included adjusting the system so that political parties remain part of civil society but have a limited influence within parliament. An alternative option discussed was an electoral system based on open lists and multi-member constituencies, aimed at strengthening the connection between deputies and voters and reducing the influence of party leaders.

🔺 Formation of the government
🔺 Number of members of parliament

It was also proposed to increase the number of deputies from the current 110 to 180–220 in order to ensure better representation of different regions and social groups. In a fully parliamentary system, the workload of MPs would significantly increase. A larger parliament would allow for broader representation of public interests and reduce the risk of dominance by a single political force.

🔺 The role of the president

The possibility of abolishing the presidential office and transferring its powers to the prime minister and the government was discussed. However, concerns were raised that this could lead to excessive concentration of power in the hands of the prime minister and create risks of authoritarian scenarios within a parliamentary system, as seen in cases such as Hungary.

🔺 Stability of a parliamentary system

It was concluded that a parliamentary system can be stable and effective if a balance is maintained between majority rule and the protection of minority interests.

The discussion often went beyond constitutional reform, touching on related reform areas such as the electoral system, administrative-territorial structure, education reform, and judicial reform. This highlights that the transition to a parliamentary republic is seen as part of a broader transformation of the entire governance and social system in Belarus.

We thank everyone who shared their views in the comments. Your engagement demonstrates the importance of active civic participation. It motivates further work and refinement of the proposals. Together, meaningful change is possible.