Everything is quiet this morning here. Lukashenko won the election officially with 82.6% of the vote. Aleksandr Milikevich, the main opposition candidate received 6.0%. The highly esteemed Russian polling organization, the Levada Center found that 47% voted for Lukashenko and 25% for Milinkevich. The protest that followed the election started strong with thousands filling October square. After a few hours, however, the crowd began steadily to thin. There were a few drunken provocateurs, but the crowd on the whole was peaceful and friendly. As Milinkevich began to speak there was a freak snow storm that reduced visibility to nothing. Everyone thought it was provocation by the police, but apparently the entire city was hit. The police presence was surprisingly small, though this is understandable. There were many of foreign media present. I am worried about what may happen to the opposition activists once the journalists and observers leave. State-run media are calling the protestors hooligans and terrorists bent on distabilizing the country. There is another protest scheduled for tonight at 6:30. It will be interesting to see whether the authorities will allow a mass meeting for a second night. I am nervous and quite disheartened, but Alexsei, my tourguide here in Minsk is an incredible optimist. I will provide more details later.