Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is widely recognised as the winner of the presidential election in Belarus on August 9, 2020, with autocratic President Aleksandr Lukashenko as her opponent. Tsikhanouskaya's story began when she joined the election race after her husband was arrested for expressing presidential aspirations. Lukashenko publicly dismissed her as a "housewife" and said a woman cannot become president. Nevertheless, Tsikhanouskaya united and successfully led the democratic coalition. After her exile, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya inspired unprecedented peaceful protests in Belarus, with some rallies attracting at least 200.000 people. As leader of the Belarusian democratic movement, she has visited 26 countries to rally support. In doing so, she calls for the release of more than 900 political prisoners and a peaceful seizure of power through free and fair elections.