Suchergebnisse

The perception of neighboring states is one of the main focus areas in sociology and political science. However, the issue of regional differentiation of public opinion often remains outside of sociological and political research. This article aims to determine regional differences in the perception of Russia by Belarusians. The study uses the results of a survey conducted by the authors in Belarus following the November 2019 parliamentary election, and the data received from a spatial analysis of the last four electoral cycles in Belarus. The authors presumed that there were no consistent lines of regional differentiation in the public opinion in Belarus, with the exception of differences in residents' perception of the center (the capital) and peripheral regions. This main assumption was divided into ten working hypotheses, and the attitude of Belarusians towards Russia as its closest neighbor was chosen as a variable in order to determine the degree of Russia's influence on the Belarusian political agenda as perceived by Belarusians, their attitude towards different types of institutional relations between the two states, and to assess how strong social ties between people living in Belarus and Russia are. A comprehensive analysis of the obtained data has proven that there is no regional cleavage in Belarusian society concerning Russia, except for expected differences in the attitude of Minsk residents and those living in other regions. Belarusians' electoral behavior is influenced not by the region they live in but by their stable social practices such as trips to Russia, use of Russian media as a source of information, and of the "Russia" theme in the election campaign debates.