Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a Belarusian blogger and dissident now living in the United States, has publicly criticized his wife, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, and her office. He has also questioned her legitimacy, according to a report by DW Europe.
In a YouTube livestream, Tsikhanouski said Tsikhanouskaya enjoys "a certain legitimacy from the European Union," but that Belarusians living in the country "quietly and silently" have not granted her any. He said many who voted for her as the joint opposition candidate in 2020 now regret it. He called her a "so-called technical candidate" who received votes because she posed no threat to the regime.
Tsikhanouski has proposed a supervisory board called the "United Office of Democratic Forces," made up of former presidential candidates, protest leaders and figures from the 2020 revolution, including himself and his wife. He said the board could oversee the distribution of grant funds. DW reports he said such a body would not have full legitimacy, "but one which was at least granted by Belarusians."
Tsikhanouski was released in June 2025 after nearly five years in prison and was forcibly taken out of Belarus. DW reports he was convicted in December 2021 to 18 years in prison, in part for organizing "mass unrest." He declined to tell DW his goals and referred to his livestreams instead.
Tsikhanouskaya and her office have not commented on his allegations. In December 2025, she told DW: "What happens in the public sphere and what happens at home, are different things." She said she understood her husband's trauma and that "We'll deal with it among ourselves."
Yury Drakakhrust, a political scientist quoted by DW, described the situation within the democratic forces as a "crisis." He doubted Tsikhanouski could win agreement from the members of his proposed board. He said Tsikhanouskaya has built resources and a status through her office and is received at high levels as a leader for Belarus and Belarusian democracy.