Presidential elections were held in Belarus on 19 March 2006. The result was a victory for incumbent, President Alexander Lukashenko, who received 84.4% of the vote. However, Western observers deemed the elections rigged. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) declared that the election "failed to meet OSCE commitments for democratic elections". In contrast, election observers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) described the vote as open and transparent. Candidates On 17 February 2006, the Central Election Commission approved the following list of candidates: Alexander Lukashenko: incumbent, in office since 1994, not associated with any party. Alaksandar Milinkievič: challenger, candidate from an opposition union, United Democratic Forces of Belarus. Sergei Gaidukevich: Liberal Democratic Party. Alyaksandr Kazulin: Belarusian Social Democratic Party. Former candidates Zianon Pazniak: withdrew on 26 January Valeri Frolov: withdrew on 1 February in favor of Kazulin Aleksandr Voitovich: withdrew on 9 January Sergei Skrebets: withdrew in late January, supports Kazulin Conduct Both the European Parliament and United States Congress issued warnings that more sanctions and similar punitive actions would be imposed if there were human rights violations during the elections. The United States already had placed sanctions on Belarus due to past election issues. The Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 allowed the provision of assistance to political parties and NGOs. The CIS observer mission commented that "the negative statements made in the EU and the United States are attempts to create predetermined negative sentiments in the international community toward elections results in Belarus. Such actions towards a sovereign state hardly comply with standards of international law." The OSCE also sent monitors to Belarus to observe the elections and to make sure the elections were free from any irregularities. On 2 March 2006, opposition candidate Alyaksandr Kazulin attempted to enter the third meeting of the All Belarusian People's Assembly, which was hosted by President Lukashenko. Security officers arrested and assaulted Kazulin, who was charged with disorderly conduct, and then held in custody for eight hours. In the build-up to the elections, several Georgians who were part of the OSCE observer team were intercepted by the Belarusian Frontier Guard and placed in custody. Lukashenko also announced that protests similar to those of the Orange, Rose and Tulip revolutions would not take place in Belarus and stated that "force will not be used" to claim the presidency. Results On 19 March, exit polls showed Lukashenko winning a third