Belarusian leader and Russian ally Alexander Lukashenko extended his 31-year rule on Monday after electoral officials declared him the winner of a presidential election that Western governments rejected as a sham.

Europe’s longest-serving leader won re-election in a contest widely believe to have been rigged. The result cements the power of a leader whose country is considered Russia’s staunchest ally.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the leader-in-exile of Belarus's opposition, has dismissed election results that saw longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko declared winner. China and Russia offered Minsk their congratulations.