2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Protests
The protests then spread outside Dhaka. The protesters, mostly students aged 15 to 19, blocked roads at major points and checked the legal documents and fitness certificates of different vehicles at different points throughout the country. The students declared 9 demands. Members of civil rights organisations expressed solidarity with protests. The protests continued for a fifth day despite the government's declaration that all educational institutions would remain closed countrywide on 2 August 2018.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Protests
Ilias Kanchan, a Bangladeshi film actor, road safety activist and founder of the Nirapad Sarak Chai campaign, expressed solidarity with the protests by initiating a human chain in Dhaka on 3 August. On 5 August, Dhaka University students blocked Shahbag Square demanding Shahjahan's resignation, before proceeding to Science Lab Square, where police attempted to disperse them with tear gas. Dozens of students were injured and several journalists were beaten up by pro-government activists.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Protests
On 6 August 2018, demonstrations were held in different parts of the country by students of the private and public universities. In Dhaka, police used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters, and approximately 40 students were injured and 10 people were arrested from the nearby area of the private university campuses. On 7 August 2018, hundreds of journalists formed a large human chain outside the National Press Club demanding punishment for attacks by BCL activists on journalists while covering the news of the protests, and also demanding punishment for attacks on the student protesters. Following arrests of some of the student protesters, BRAC University students boycotted class on 8 August demanding release of the detained protesters, while Professor Abdul Mannan Choudhury, Vice-Chancellor of World University of Bangladesh also asked the government to release the protesters. No further protests have been reported since.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
Student protesters and journalists collecting news of the protests were attacked by pro-government supporters alleged to be members of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), the student wing of the ruling political party, injuring about 115 students and 15 journalists in Dhaka.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
One local daily newspaper reported that three of its journalists were beaten and one female journalist was molested by BCL men while covering protests in the Jhigatola area of Dhaka on 4 August. Local journalists also reported having their camera equipment destroyed and phones snatched. They also alleged that they were forced to delete the videos of violence from their mobile phone.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
Bangladesh Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets and used batons to disperse the protesters leaving many people injured. The police and the road transport minister Obaidul Quader rejected all allegations of attack on the protesters. One top leader of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League alleged that some criminals wearing school uniforms had joined the violence, but this was unconfirmed.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
Posts on social media alleged that four female students of Bir Shreshtha Noor Mohammad Public College were taken to Bangladesh Awami League office and raped by BCL activists; however, these reports remain unconfirmed and have been denied by BCL leadership. Some of the alleged incidents, including rape, were later described as rumours that spread over social media.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
On 4 August, a group of armed men riding motorcycles attacked an official car carrying Marcia Bernicat, the US ambassador to Bangladesh, although nobody was injured.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
On 5 August, police used tear gas again to disperse thousands of school, college and university students. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged the protesters to go home and expressed concern that a "third party" could sabotage the protests and put the safety of students at risk. At least six photojournalists, including photojournalists of Associated Press, The Daily Bonik Barta, Janakantha, a photography student of Pathshala South Asian Media Institute as well as freelance photojournalists, were attacked with iron rods, machetes and sticks in Dhaka by activists of BCL. Law enforcement was present for the incident, but did not make any attempt to stop the attackers. The attackers tried to snatch the victims' camera and phones, threatening to attack anyone who possessed a camera.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
Following a live interview about the protests with Al Jazeera, photographer Shahidul Alam was detained by a group of between 30 and 35 plainclothes police officers on 5 August. Alam was charged under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act and was remanded for seven days. He told the court that he had been tortured while in police custody. The Supreme Court halted the seven-day remand on 7 August and after observing his physical condition ordered authorities to admit him to a hospital. Alam was taken to a hospital on 8 August at 9 am. However, Alam was taken back to the office of the Detective Branch of police again at 2 pm on the same day.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
More 5 people have been detained by the Bangladesh Police including Mahabubur Rahaman Arman, a human rights activist, and cybersecurity and crime analyst who was charged under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act and was remanded for six days. Others were remanded for 3–5 days in the same Act during that time.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
On 6 August, East West University students who had blocked the road in front of the University in late morning protests were attacked by a group of men carrying sticks. Local residents stated that the labour union wing of the ruling party, the "Shecchashebok League" activists, were among the attackers. Police also fired tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. Prothom Alo correspondent Nasrin Akhtar Shumi, who recorded the violence on her phone, had her phone snatched away by the police who took her to the local police outpost and erased the video recording. Police were also alleged to have sought assistance from pro-government youths to deal with the protesters.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Retaliation and attacks on protesters and journalists
Relatives of the protesters expressed their dismay when 22 private university students involved in the protests were detained by the police on 7 August, but no legal action was taken on the alleged ruling party activists who attacked the protesters. On 8 August, police raided the Bashundhara Residential Area in Dhaka, where a number of private university students reside, but no one was arrested during the operation.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
Although no official statement was published by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said at a press briefing on 2 August that the prime minister had requested students to stop protesting on the streets and return to their schools. The Ministry of Education advised all educational institutions to remain closed on 2 August in order to control the ongoing wave of student agitation. Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said that this decision was taken based on security concerns.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
The Cyber Crime Unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police filed cases against 29 individuals and online news portals for sharing news and media related to the protests at the Ramna Police Station. Private television channel Ekattor TV was issued a letter of warning by the Information Ministry after it aired footage of student protests on national television.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
On 3 August, the government donated a savings certificate of 2 million BDT to each of the families of the students who died in the bus accident.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
On 4 August, the government blocked mobile internet access for 24 hours in response to supposed misinformation circulating online. Internet service providers were ordered to reduce the mobile internet speed to 1.28 kbit/s to prevent upload of pictures or videos to the internet. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan announced that police would take "tough action" against the agitating students "if limit is crossed [sic? ] ".


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
On 5 August, 3G and 4G cellular networks were again reportedly blocked by authorities in an attempt to control the mass spread of misinformation online, resulting in a temporary communication black-out.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
On 6 August, a new traffic act was approved at a cabinet meeting, proposing capital punishment for intentional killing and five years prison for accidental killing with a motor vehicle.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Official response
Bus owners took the decision to put contract drivers on monthly payroll. They commented: "The drivers move recklessly so that they can earn extra on an additional trip when they can. If they get a monthly salary, their mentality of rash driving will change." The announcement came on 8 August and had been set to be enforced from 1 September 2018.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Aftermath
In response to the protests, national authorities launched "Traffic Week", a week-long road-safety program. On its first day, 5 August, 19,366 cases were filed for traffic rule violators, with 25,882 more recorded the following day.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Aftermath
Bangladesh police filed 34 cases against protesters and arrested at least 37 of them. No charges were filed against the attackers over attacks on protesters and journalists. Photographer Shahidul Alam was detained for interrogation and remanded by police due to his social media activity on the protest; Amnesty International condemned the arrest.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Aftermath
In retaliation to the arrest of protesters, Noakhali District's Noakhali University on 9 August announced its indefinite closure until all protesters were released.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Aftermath
According to an official in the cyber crime division of the Dhaka metropolitan police, up to 1,200 social media accounts have been identified to allegedly spread rumours. In addition to police officers, members of pro-government youth league BCL, also asked followers to send examples of anyone allegedly spreading rumours. Posts featuring the names and pictures of alleged activists including four women were spread across Facebook and Instagram. These actions have made many students in Dhaka to panic and made them stop posting about the protests online. There are also reports of terrified students deleting their online messages of support to the protests. On 9 August, Dhaka University authority handed over one of their student to police with the assistance of pro-government youth league BCL for his Facebook posts.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, Aftermath
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) scrutinised over 1,500 profiles on different social media and launched legal action against 150 such profile holders for their alleged involvement in instigating anarchy during the movement.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, International response
The United Nations expressed concern for the safety of Bangladeshi children and young people in the protests. The US Embassy in Dhaka issued a statement condemning the actions taken against the student protesters. London-based Save the Children urged the government to meet the demands of the students and to ensure the safety of the protesting students. The High Commission of Canada to Bangladesh also expressed Canada's concern for the safety of the students exercising their rights and called for action against "those violating these democratic rights".


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, International response
Amnesty International also released a statement, calling for the release of activist and photographer Shahidul Alam and for an end to the crackdown on student protesters. Similarly, PEN International issued a statement demanding the immediate release of the photographer. Indian writer Arundhati Roy, Canadian author Naomi Klein, American writer philosopher Noam Chomsky and Indian intellectual Vijay Prashad also demanded immediate release of photographer Alam in a joint statement. RSF urged the government to protect those involved in the freedom of the press.


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, International response
Swedish Foreign Affairs Minister Margot Wallström voiced her concern regarding the violent scenes witnessed in Dhaka and called for the respect of the right to peacefully protest. The European Union also expressed concern over the attacks on students and journalists. New York-based Human Rights Watch criticised the Bangladesh government for "unlawfully attacking" student protesters and locking up people for "peaceful criticism".


2018 Bangladesh road-safety protests, In popular culture
A film titled Bikkhov starring Shanto Khan and Srabanti Chatterjee, has been made based on the event.


2018 Bangladeshi general election
General elections were held in Bangladesh on 30 December 2018 to elect members of the Jatiya Sangsad. The result was a landslide victory for the Awami League led by Sheikh Hasina.


2018 Bangladeshi general election
According to political scientist Ali Riaz, the elections were not free and fair. The BBC News reported that they were marred by violence and allegations of vote rigging. Opposition leader Kamal Hossain rejected the results, calling it "farcical" and demanding fresh elections to be held under a neutral government. The Bangladesh Election Commission said it would investigate reported vote-rigging allegations from "across the country." The election saw the use of electronic voting machines for the first time.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Electoral system
The 350 members of the Jatiya Sangsad consist of 300 directly elected seats using first-past-the-post voting in single-member constituencies, and an additional 50 seats reserved for women. The reserved seats are distributed based on the proportional vote share of the contesting parties. Each parliament sits for a five-year term.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Electoral system
Approximately 100 million voters were expected to vote from 40,199 polling stations across the country. Electronic voting machines were used in six constituencies.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Background
The previous general elections in January 2014 were boycotted by the main opposition alliance, led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and three-time former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. As a result, the Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina won a landslide victory, taking 234 of the 300 seats in an election that saw 153 seats uncontested.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Background
In July 2017, the BNP stated that it was ready to contest the next general elections if parliament was dissolved and the election commission consisted of non-partisan members. On 14 September 2017 the Official Chief Election Commissioner confirmed that the BNP would contest the elections. However, following the conviction of BNP chair Khaleda Zia for corruption, the High Court of Bangladesh ruled that Zia was ineligible to run for office. As such her role is unclear in any potential government which contained the BNP.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Campaign
In August 2017, Jatiya Party (Ershad) chairman and former President Hussain Ershad indicated that he wanted his party to leave the Awami League-led Grand Alliance and join a new alliance with democratic left and Islamic democratic parties. In November 2018 the party announced that it would join the Awami League-led alliance. On 28 December, Ershad announced Jatiya Party candidates contesting from “open seats” would support the ruling Awami League-led grand alliance candidates and extended his support to "my [his] 'sister' Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina". Ershad personally withdrew from contesting the Dhaka-17 seat in favour of the Awami League candidate. Ershad said however that “strong candidates” of his party would stay in the race.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Campaign
On 13 October 2018, the Jatiya Oikya Front (National Unity Front) was formed, consisting primarily of the Gano Forum, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-JSD and Nagorik Oikya, led by former Foreign Minister Kamal Hossain of the Gano Forum. On 18 December the alliance announced a 14-point manifesto, which included a pledge to reduce the power of the office of Prime Minister.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Campaign
There was controversy in the run up to the elections surrounding the nomination of banned Jamaati candidates under the BNP banner. In 2013, the hard-line, right-wing, Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami was banned from registering and therefore contesting in elections by the High Court, citing their charter violates the constitution. Twenty-five Jamaati candidates ran in the election, with twenty-two nominations for BNP and three running as independents. An investigation was launched but on 23 December the Election Commission Secretary Helaluddin Ahmed said they had examined the related law and "there is no scope for rejecting the Jamaat leaders' candidacy at this moment."


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Campaign
On 26 December, just days before the election, Jatiya Oikya Front leader Kamal Hossain expressed his regret about Jamaat's involvement in the elections under his alliance, claiming "had I known [that Jamaat leaders will be given BNP tickets] I would not have been part of it." The media however had reported involvement at the end of November.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Campaign
In accordance with election commission rules, campaigning was halted at 08:00 AM on the morning of 28 December.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
Between 9 and 12 December 2018, 47 incidences of violence were reported, in which eight people were killed and 560 were injured.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
According to the BNP Office, as of 26 December 2018, at least 12,923 people (mostly BNP, Jatiya Oikya Front and 18 Party Alliance activists) had been injured in 2,833 attacks on opposition candidates. Between 8 November and 25 December, at least 1,574 cases were filed against BNP officials in different districts. During the same period, 15,568 activists were arrested. According to The Daily Star, at least 56 candidates, mostly from the BNP, were attacked, with around 1,190 people injured and over 800 BNP-Jamaat officials arrested between 10 and 28 December.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
On 29 December, the day before the elections, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission suspended 3G and 4G connections across the country until after the elections.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
Newspaper Daily Star wrote on 17 December 2018 that in  violence before Bangladesh elections some opposition candidates were attacked, 13 of them were injured and two arrested


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
On election day, at least 17 people were killed in clashes between ruling party supporters and the opposition.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
Reports say that many supporters of the opposition Parties were arrested just before Bangladesh elections on 30 December 2018. The violence that erupted before the election day left at least 17 people dead.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Violence
On 3 January 2019, Human Rights Watch called for an investigation on attack on members of the opposition party on and before Bangladesh elections.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Vote rigging
A BBC correspondent reported seeing a ballot box already full of votes prior to the polling station in Chittagong opening. Allegations of voting irregularities including polling booths inexplicably closing for “lunch breaks”, voters being turned away and ballots being counted unrealistically quickly were widespread. Local media published accounts by correspondents who claimed to have witnessed Awami League members stuffing ballot boxes in the presence of police and election officials. Voters also complained about getting the ruling party's symbol stamped on their ballot papers and being instructed to vote for the ruling party in polling centers. In the presence of the voting officers, some voters had to vote for Awami League candidates and refused to accept, yet their ballots were also dropped into the ballot box. The Bangladesh Election Commission promised to investigate numerous reports of vote rigging.


2018 Bangladeshi general election, Conduct, Suppression of opposition
Opposition candidates had encountered violence, threats and harassment when they attempted to campaign. Dozen of candidates of the main opposition party, the BNP, were arrested on spurious charges. Few electoral agents from the opposition showed up at polling stations. Those who did show up were prevented from entering the stations by supporters of the ruling party, according to Kamal Hossain.


2018 Bangladeshi presidential election
The Bangladeshi presidential election of  was held on 18 February 2018. It was the seventh presidential election held since the Twelfth Amendment changed how the president gets elected. The tenure of the incumbent president was set to end on April 23, 2018. Earlier, on January 25, 2018, the Election Commission announced the election schedule. Incumbent president Abdul Hamid was nominated for the second time as the candidate to run for election by the ruling party. Hamid was declared president by the Election Commission as no other candidate submitted nomination papers to the commission. He was sworn in by the Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad Shirin Chaudhury on April 24, 2018. With the result of the election, Hamid became the first incumbent president to be reelected in the history of Bangladesh.


2018 Banja Luka Challenger
The 2018 Banja Luka Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on clay courts. It was the seventeenth edition of the tournament which was part of the 2018 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina from 10 to 16 September 2018.


2018 Banja Luka Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 Banja Luka Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following player received entry into the singles main draw as a special exempt:


2018 Banja Luka Challenger – Doubles
Marin and Tomislav Draganja were the defending champions but only Tomislav chose to defend his title, partnering Alessandro Giannessi. Tomislav Draganja lost in the quarterfinals to Andrej Martin and Hans Podlipnik Castillo.


2018 Banja Luka Challenger – Doubles
Martin and Podlipnik Castillo won the title after defeating Laurynas Grigelis and Alessandro Motti 7–5, 4–6, [10–7] in the final.


2018 Banja Luka Challenger – Singles
Maximilian Marterer was the defending champion but chose not to defend his title.


2018 Banja Luka Challenger – Singles
Alessandro Giannessi won the title after defeating Carlos Berlocq 6–7(6–8), 6–4, 6–4 in the final.


2018 Bank of America Roval 400
The 2018 Bank of America Roval 400 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on September 30, 2018, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Contested over 109 laps on the 2.28-mile (3.67 km) road course, it was the 29th race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, third race of the Playoffs, and final race of the Round of 16. This was the first race to use Charlotte's "Roval" road course layout.


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Report, Background
For 2018, deviating from past NASCAR events at Charlotte, the race will utilize a road course configuration of Charlotte Motor Speedway, promoted and trademarked as the "Roval". The course is  2.28 miles (3.67 km) in length and features 17 turns, utilizing the infield road course and portions of the oval track. The race will be contested over a scheduled distance of 109 laps, 400 kilometres (250 mi).


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Report, Background
During July 2018 tests on the road course, concerns were raised over drivers "cheating" designated chicanes on the course. The chicanes were modified with additional tire barriers and rumble strips in order to encourage drivers to properly drive through them, and NASCAR will enforce drive-through penalties on drivers who illegally "short-cut" parts of the course. The chicanes will not be used during pace laps, nor will they be used during restarts.


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, First practice
Kyle Busch was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 77.145 seconds and a speed of 106.397 mph (171.229 km/h).


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Qualifying
Kurt Busch scored the pole for the race with a time of 76.805 and a speed of 106.868 mph (171.987 km/h).


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Practice (post-qualifying), Second practice
Jimmie Johnson was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 78.043 seconds and a speed of 105.173 mph (169.260 km/h).


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Practice (post-qualifying), Final practice
Brad Keselowski was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 77.730 seconds and a speed of 105.596 mph (169.940 km/h).


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Media, Television
NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the call in the booth for the race. Parker Kligerman called from different locations around the 17-turn ROVAL. Dave Burns, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.


2018 Bank of America Roval 400, Media, Radio
The Performance Racing Network had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.


2018 Barbadian general election
General elections were held in Barbados on 24 May 2018. The result was a landslide victory for the opposition Barbados Labour Party (BLP), which won all 30 seats in the House of Assembly, resulting in BLP leader Mia Mottley becoming the country's first female Prime Minister. The BLP's victory was the first time a party had won every seat in the House of Assembly. Previously, the most one-sided result for a Barbadian election had been in 1999, when the BLP won 24 of the 28 seats. The BLP's 73.5 percent vote share was also the highest on record.


2018 Barbadian general election
The ruling Democratic Labour Party (DLP) led by Freundel Stuart lost all 16 seats, the worst defeat of a sitting government in Barbadian history. The DLP saw its vote share more than halve compared to the previous elections in 2013, with only one of its candidates receiving more than 40 percent of the vote. Stuart was defeated in his own constituency, receiving only 26.7 percent of the vote, the second time a sitting Prime Minister had lost their own seat.


2018 Barbadian general election
The election was fought primarily on the DLP's stewardship of the economy during its decade in power. The government had had to contend with numerous downgrades of its credit rating due to fallout from the global financial crisis. The BLP criticised the DLP over rising taxes and a declining standard of living, and promised numerous infrastructure upgrades if elected.


2018 Barbadian general election, Electoral system
The 30 members of the House of Assembly were elected by first-past-the-post voting in single-member constituencies.


2018 Barbadian general election, Candidates
A record 134 candidates from nine political parties contested the elections. Four of the smaller parties chose to fight together under the 'Coalition of United Parties' banner.


2018 Barbadian general election, Aftermath
One week after the elections, Joseph Atherley, MP for St. Michael West, crossed the floor to become the House of Assembly's sole opposition member, citing concerns about democracy. He was subsequently appointed Leader of the Opposition. Originally sitting as an independent, he set up his own party, the People's Party for Democracy and Development.


2018 Barbadian general election, Aftermath, 2020 St George North by-election
A by-election was held in the constituency of St George North on 11 November 2020 following the resignation of Gline Clarke, who had represented the constituency for 26 years, to accept the post of Barbadian High Commissioner to Canada. It was the first by-election to take place since the 2018 general election. Toni Moore retained the seat for the BLP.


2018 Barbados Premier League
The 2018 Barbados Premier League (officially the Digicel Premier League for sponsorship reasons) is the 72nd season of the highest tier of football in Barbados. The season began on 11 March and ended on 8 July 2018.


2018 Barbados Premier League, Format
The 12 teams will be divided into two zones of six teams each. Each team will play the other teams in their own zone twice and the teams in the other zone once, for a total of 16 matches. The teams finishing first in each zone will play in the championship match for the title, while the teams finishing second in each zone will play in the third place match. The teams finishing last in each zone will be relegated, while the teams finishing fifth will play over two matches with the loser also relegated.


2018 Barcelona Formula 2 round
The 2018 Barcelona FIA Formula 2 round was a pair of motor races for Formula 2 cars that took place on 12 and 13 May 2018 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Catalonia, Spain as part of the FIA Formula 2 Championship. It was the third round of the 2018 FIA Formula 2 Championship and ran in support of the 2018 Spanish Grand Prix.


2018 Barcelona GP3 Series round
The 2018 Barcelona GP3 Series round was a motor racing event held on 12 and 13 May 2018 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain. It was the opening round of the 2018 GP3 Series, and ran in support of the 2018 Spanish Grand Prix.


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell
The 2018 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell (also known as the Torneo Conde de Godó) was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 66th edition of the event and part of the ATP World Tour 500 series of the 2018 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, from April 23 through April 29, 2018.


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell – Doubles
Florin Mergea and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi were the defending champions, but Mergea chose to compete in Budapest instead. Qureshi played alongside Jean-Julien Rojer, but lost in the final to Feliciano López and Marc López, 6–7(5–7), 4–6.


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell – Doubles
Feliciano and Marc López became the first all-spanish team in winning the tournament since 1997.


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell – Singles
Two-time defending champion Rafael Nadal successfully defended his title, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final, 6–2, 6–1. By winning the title, Nadal retained the ATP no. 1 singles ranking. It was Nadal's record-extending eleventh Barcelona Open title and his 20th ATP 500 title overall, equaling Roger Federer's record. It was Tsitsipas' maiden ATP final.


2018 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell – Singles, Seeds
Click on the seed number of a player to go to their draw section.


2018 Barcelona Sporting Club season
The 2018 season was Barcelona Sporting Club's 93th in existence and the club's 60th consecutive season in the top flight of Ecuadorian football.


2018 Bareunmirae Party leadership election
On 2 September 2018, Bareunmirae Party held a leadership election.


2018 Bareunmirae Party leadership election, Background
This was a snap election called after the resignation of both Yoo Seong-min and Park Joo-sun due to the serious defeat in local elections in 2018. Until the new leadership election, the party's presidency was temporarily taken by Kim Dong-cheol, party's parliamentary leader.


2018 Bareunmirae Party leadership election, Results
Sohn Hak-kyu, former Governor of Gyeonggi Province, won as the President. Incumbent MP Ha Tae-keung and entrepreneur Lee Jun-seok that came behind of Sohn, became Vice Presidents. Kwon Eun-hui, despite ended as the 6th and the last, automatically took vice presidency specialised for women.


2018 Bareunmirae Party leadership election, Results
Other than that, Kim Soo-min, an incumbent MP, was elected as the party's Youth Chief.


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting
On the morning of 7 October 2018, a Palestinian gunman opened fire on several Israelis in the Barkan Industrial Park, killing two Israelis and critically injuring another. The shooting incident was declared a "terrorist attack" by the IDF. It was the first attack in the park and the second fatal attack in the West Bank to occur in three weeks.


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting
A 23-year-old Palestinian, had worked in a factory where the shooting took place.


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting
IDF forces conducted an intensive two-month manhunt to capture the militant who fled the scene. The IDF arrested some relatives of the assailant.


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting, Reactions
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the shooting "a very severe terror attack".


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting, Manhunt for shooter ends in his death
The two-months long search for the shooter ended on 12 December when his hiding place was discovered by Israeli security. He shot at the arresting officers who returned fire, killing him. The militant was killed on 13 December 2018 after an armed clash with a special IDF force called Yamam in the Askar refugee camp in Nablus.


2018 Barkan Industrial Park shooting, Manhunt for shooter ends in his death
The shooter, Ashraf Naalwa, 23, from the West Bank village of Shuweika near Tulkarem, was said by security officials to have been planning a new attack at the time he was found and killed.


2018 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election
The 2018 Barking and Dagenham Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Barking and Dagenham Council in London. This was on the same day as other local elections. The Labour Party won every available council seat for the third election in a row, winning 74% of the popular vote. The Conservatives saw their vote share rise by 13 percentage points, but failed to win any seats.


2018 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election, Background
At the last election in May 2014, Labour won 52% of the vote share, and all 51 seats, but due to defections were reduced to 49 seats. Both Labour and the Conservatives stood candidates in all 17 wards, contesting all 51 seats. The BNP and the Greens were the only two other parties to field candidates, two and one respectively. An independent candidate also stood in Eastbrook. Despite gaining over 26% of the vote and coming second in all wards except Longbridge at the previous election, UKIP did not field any candidates.


2018 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election, Ward results, Abbey
Cllr Butt was suspended by the Labour Party two weeks after the election, but was reinstated after apologising for not declaring an interest in two properties whilst she was responsible for punishing rogue landlords.


2018 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election, Ward results, Longbridge
On 24 May 2019 Cllr Gill was suspended from the Labour Party after social media posts indicated he supported The Brexit Party in the 2019 European Elections. He was later reinstated.


2018 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election, By-elections between 2018 and 2022, Thames
The by-election was called following the resignation of Councillor Bill Turner.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election
The 2018 Barnet Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Barnet Borough Council in England. It took place on the same day as other local elections in 2018. In the last election, the Conservatives won control of the council with 32 seats, compared to 30 for Labour and 1 for the Liberal Democrats. On 15 March 2018, following the resignation of a Conservative councillor, the council was in a state of no overall control. The election on 3 May 2018 saw the Conservatives take back overall control with a majority of 13.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election
On 20 September 2019 Gabriel Rozenberg (elected Conservative) joined the Liberal Democrats, citing his opposition to Brexit. On 2 October, he was then followed by Jess Brayne (elected Labour) who also defected to the Liberal Democrats.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Background
At the last election in 2014, the Conservatives were re-elected with a reduced majority. Labour gained 9 seats from the Conservatives, but the Conservatives remained in office as a result of winning 2 seats from the Liberal Democrats in Childs Hill ward.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Background
The Conservatives remained in control of the council with 32 seats until March 2018, when councillor Sury Khatri resigned his membership and role as party whip after being deselected as a Conservative candidate. As a result, the Conservatives lost their majority on the Council, leaving them as a minority administration.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Council composition
Prior to the election, the composition of the council was:


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, East Barnet
Pearce was a councillor for Cockfosters ward in the London Borough of Enfield prior to the election.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, East Finchley
Farrier was a councillor for Burnt Oak ward prior to the election.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, Garden Suburb
On September 20, 2019, Cllr Gabriel Rozenberg left the Conservatives  to join the Liberal Democrats due to their stance on Brexit and the election of Boris Johnson as party leader.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, Hendon
Ioannidis was a councillor for Brunswick Park ward prior to the election.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, High Barnet
Trevethan was a councillor for Underhill prior to the election.


2018 Barnet London Borough Council election, Results, Underhill
On February 25, 2019, Cllr Jessica Brayne left the Labour Party over their failure to tackle anti-Semitism and their stance on Brexit. She then joined the Liberal Democrats in September 2019.


2018 Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 2018 Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting
Elections to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for 2018 proceeded according to rules most recently amended in 2016. As in the past, the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) voted by mail to select from a ballot of recently retired players. The results were announced on January 24, 2018, with the BBWAA electing Chipper Jones, Vladimir Guerrero, Jim Thome and Trevor Hoffman to the Hall of Fame. Jones and Thome were elected in their first year of eligibility.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting
The three voting panels that replaced the more broadly defined Veterans Committee following a 2010 rules change were replaced by a new set of four panels in 2016. The Modern Baseball Era Committee convened on December 10, 2017, to select from a ballot of retired players and non-playing personnel who made their greatest contributions to the sport between 1970 and 1987, with Jack Morris and Alan Trammell elected by this body. The formal induction ceremony was held at the Hall's facilities in Cooperstown, New York, on July 29, 2018.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, BBWAA election
The BBWAA election rules remained identical to those that were in effect for the most recent elections. The BBWAA voted at the 2016 winter meetings to make all Hall of Fame ballots public one week after the results were announced, effective with this election. However, the Hall rejected the BBWAA's proposal, and ballots remain confidential unless individual voters choose to reveal them (which is allowed by Hall of Fame rules).


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, BBWAA election
Another recent rules change, announced in 2015, tightened the qualifications for the BBWAA electorate. Beginning with the 2016 election, eligible voters must not only have 10 years of continuous BBWAA membership, but also be currently active members, or have held active status within the 10 years prior to the election. A BBWAA member who has not been active for more than 10 years can regain voting status by covering MLB in the year preceding the election. As a result of the new rule, the vote total in 2016 decreased by 109 from the previous year, to 440.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, BBWAA election
422 ballots were cast, 20 fewer than in 2017. There were 422 ballots cast, with a total of 3570 votes for individual players, an average of 8.46 names per ballot—the highest per-ballot average since 1960 (8.51 votes per ballot).


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, BBWAA election
Players who were eligible for the first time in 2018 but were not on the ballot included Rod Barajas, Miguel Batista, Geoff Blum, Miguel Cairo, Aaron Cook, Francisco Cordero, Juan Cruz, Brian Fuentes, Bill Hall, Willie Harris, Nick Johnson, Adam Kennedy, Rodrigo López, Mike MacDougal, Guillermo Mota, Will Ohman, Vicente Padilla, Carl Pavano, Scott Podsednik, Juan Rivera, J. C. Romero, Brian Schneider, Ben Sheets, Jeff Suppan, Kip Wells, Dan Wheeler and Jack Wilson.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Modern Baseball Era Committee
On July 23, 2016, the Hall of Fame announced changes to the Era Committee system. The system's timeframes were restructured to place a greater emphasis on the modern game, and to reduce the frequency at which individuals from the pre-1970 game (including Negro league baseball figures) will have their careers reviewed. Considering candidates whose greatest contributions occurred from 1970 to 1987, the Modern Baseball Era Committee met in 2017 as part of the elections for the next calendar year.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Modern Baseball Era Committee
On November 6, 2017, the Hall announced the 10 candidates to be considered when the Modern Baseball Era Committee met at the 2017 winter meetings near Walt Disney World on December 10, with the voting results announced immediately after the committee met. The cutoff for election and induction remained the standard 75%, or 12 of 16 votes.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Modern Baseball Era Committee
All candidates except Miller were living when the ballot and voting results were announced. Mattingly, Morris, Murphy and Trammell were being considered for the first time; the others had been considered at least once by one of the predecessors to this committee. Garvey, John, Miller, Parker and Simmons were most recently considered in 2014 by the former Expansion Era Committee, and Tiant was most recently considered by the former Golden Era Committee in 2015.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Modern Baseball Era Committee
Among players, Simmons was the only candidate who was not on the BBWAA ballot for the full 15-year period formerly allowed by Hall rules; he received less than 5% when he debuted on the BBWAA ballot in 1994 and thus did not appear on further ballots. The Hall changed the eligibility period to 10 years starting with the 2015 election, but Trammell and Mattingly (who were then past the new 10-year cutoff) retained their original 15-year eligibility window.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, J. G. Taylor Spink Award
The J. G. Taylor Spink Award has been presented by the BBWAA at the annual summer induction ceremonies since 1962. Through 2010, it was awarded during the main induction ceremony, but is now given the previous day at the Hall of Fame Awards Presentation. It recognizes a sportswriter "for meritorious contributions to baseball writing". The recipients are not members of the Hall of Fame but are featured in a permanent exhibit at the National Baseball Museum.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, J. G. Taylor Spink Award
The three finalists for the 2018 award were announced during the 2017 All-Star break.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, J. G. Taylor Spink Award
Ocker was announced as the recipient during the 2017 winter meetings on December 12. He covered the Cleveland Indians for more than three decades, serving as Cleveland Indians beat reporter for the Beacon-Journal from 1981 until his retirement at the end of the 2013 season. Ocker received 168 of the 426 ballots cast (including two blanks) to Reeves' 143 and Reusse's 113.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
Various changes in July 2016 were also made to the annual Ford C. Frick Award elections, presented annually to a preeminent baseball broadcaster since 1978. According to the Hall, the new criteria for selection are "Commitment to excellence, quality of broadcasting abilities, reverence within the game, popularity with fans, and recognition by peers."


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
Additionally, a ballot of eight candidates will now be set, down from 10 in years past. The three ballot slots previously determined by fan voting on Facebook will now be filled by a committee of historians.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
A new election cycle has been established, rotating annually between Current Major League Markets (team-specific announcers) with the 2017 Frick Award; National Voices (broadcasters whose contributions were realized on a national level) with the 2018 Frick Award; and Broadcasting Beginnings (early team voices and pioneers of baseball broadcasting) with the 2019 Frick Award. This cycle will repeat every three years.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
The Hall announced the following finalists for the 2018 Ford C. Frick Award on October 23, 2017.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
Four finalists were members of the Hall of Fame as players—Dean, Drysdale, Morgan and Reese. When the ballot was announced, Buck, Costas, Michaels and Morgan were still alive. The other four were deceased.


2018 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, Ford C. Frick Award
Costas was announced as the recipient at the 2017 winter meetings on December 13. He began his sportscasting career as a play-by-play caller for the Spirits of St. Louis in the American Basketball Association, and went from there to calling NBA and NFL games for CBS, but made his greatest mark as part of NBC's broadcast team for its national MLB telecasts from 1982 to 2009. Costas then joined the MLB Network, where he was serving as the network's documentary host when he was announced as the Frick Award recipient.


2018 Bashkir parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Bashkortostan on 9 September 2018 to elect the 110 members of 6th convocation of the State Assembly. The United Russia won majority of seats while the Communist Party and Liberal Democratic Party earned the highest gain of seats.


2018 Bashkir parliamentary election, Electoral system
In accordance with the Bashkir law, the State Assembly of Bashkortostan members are elected for a five year term on the basis of universal equal and direct suffrage through a secret ballot by a citizen of the Russian Federation. A person may be eligible to be elected if he or she has reached the age of 21 as well as the right to vote. The State Assembly can function if at least 2/3's of its members have been elected.


2018 Basilan Steel season
The 2018 Basilan Steel season is the 1st season of the franchise in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL).


2018 Basildon Borough Council election
The 2018 Basildon Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Basildon Borough Council in Essex. This was on the same day as other local elections. The Conservative Party gained overall control of the council. which had previously been under no overall control and run by a coalition between UKIP, Labour and Independents.


2018 Basildon Borough Council election, Results Summary
All comparisons in vote share are to the corresponding 2014 election.


2018 Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council election
The 2018 Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council election took place on the 3rd May 2018 to elect 20 members to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, as part of the wider local elections. The seats were last up for election in 2014. The councillor for Basing up for election this year, Onnalee Cubitt, had rejoined the Conservative Party prior to the election and held her seat as a Conservative.


2018 Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council election, Results
The Conservative Party won a seat from the Liberal Democrats in Whitchurch, but themselves lost a seat in Winklebury to Labour. As a result, the number of Conservative seats was steady, with Labour having a net gain of one, and the Liberal Democrats a net loss of one. Independent councillor Ian Tiblury held the sole independent seat.


2018 Baskerville Shield
The 2018 Baskerville Shield was a three match rugby league series between New Zealand and England for the Baskerville Shield. The hosts, England, won the series by two matches to one.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Background
New Zealand and England previously took part in a competitive event in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup, New Zealand lost to Fiji in the quarter-finals, while England made the final, losing to Australia by a score of just 6-0.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Background
New Zealand and England previously played against each other in a mid-season international on 23 June 2018 at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colorado. England won 36-18.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Background
New Zealand was last in Great Britain for the 2016 Rugby League Four Nations. During that tournament New Zealand defeated England 17-16 in Huddersfield. They last played a three match test series against England during the 2015 New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain, losing the series 2-1. With the completion of these three tests, New Zealand and England played each other four times in 2018.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Squads, New Zealand
A wider squad was named on 3 September 2018 consisting of the best New Zealand eligible players in the running to play in the upcoming tour. The final touring squad of 23 players was named on 1 October.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Squads, New Zealand
On 4 October, Corey Harawira-Naera withdrew from the touring 23-man squad due to a groin injury. Agnatius Paasi and Peta Hiku were subsequently added to the squad.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Squads, New Zealand
Ages are as of 27 October 2018, the day of the first test.


2018 Baskerville Shield, Fixtures
New Zealand announced three matches on tour, all test matches against England.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four
The 2018 Basketball Champions League (BCL) Final Four was the second concluding Basketball Champions League Final Four tournament. It was the concluding phase of the 2017–18 Basketball Champions League season, which marked the second season of Basketball Champions League (BCL). The Final Four took place on 4–6 May 2018. The O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall in Athens, home arena of hosts AEK Athens, hosted the tournament. AEK won the league title after defeating Monaco in the final.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Venue
On 5 April 2018, the O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece was announced as the venue of the 2018 Final Four. AEK Athens, which qualified for the Final Four on 4 April, would serve as host. The arena was completed in 1995, and was the largest indoor venue in use for sporting events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. It is located in the Athens suburb of Marousi. It is considered to be one of the biggest and most modern indoor sports arenas in all of Europe.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Draw
The draw for the pairings for the Final Four was held on 12 April 2018.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Background, MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg
Ludwigsburg qualified for its first ever final phase of a European competition, as in the 2016–17 season they were eliminated by Banvit on a buzzer-beater. In the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), Riesen was having a solid year as it was battling for playoff position. In the BCL play-offs, Riesen eliminated two German sides, EWE Baskets Oldenburg and medi Bayreuth in order to advance to the final four.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Background, Monaco
Monaco was at the top of the standings in its domestic Pro A season. In February, Monaco won the Leaders Cup for its third consecutive time. In the previous season, the team also qualified for the Final Four but was eliminated in the semi-finals, by runners-up Banvit.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Background, AEK Athens
AEK was having a successful season as well, as the team captured its fourth Greek Cup title, while beating EuroLeague teams Olympiacos and Panathinaikos on the way. AEK had a remarkable path to the final four, as it was nearly eliminated in the round of 16 but was saved by a three-pointer by Kevin Punter to defeat Czech side ČEZ Nymburk. In the quarter-finals, AEK eliminated French side SIG Strasbourg.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Background, AEK Athens
Guard Manny Harris was named the Basketball Champions League MVP as well.


2018 Basketball Champions League Final Four, Background, UCAM Murcia
In its first BCL season, and just its second year ever playing in European competitions, Murcia eliminated the defending champions Iberostar Tenerife in the round of 16. In the quarter-finals, Pınar Karşıyaka was defeated. In the 2017–18 ACB season, Murcia was close to qualifying to the playoffs.


2018 Basketball League of Serbia playoffs
The 2018 Basketball League of Serbia playoffs is the play-off tournament that decided the winner of the Basketball League of Serbia for  the 2017–18 season. The playoffs started on 21 May and ended on 11 June 2018.


2018 Basque Pelota World Championships
The 2018 Basque Pelota World Championships were the 18th edition of the Basque Pelota World Championships organized by  the FIPV.


2018 Basque Pelota World Championships, Events
A total of 14 events were disputed, in 4 playing areas.


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race
The 2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on August 18, 2018 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. Contested over 500 laps on the .533-mile (0.858 km) short track, it was the 24th race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Report, Background
The Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Despite its short length, Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Practice, First practice
Chase Elliott was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 15.151 seconds and a speed of 126.645 mph (203.815 km/h).


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Practice, Final practice
Kyle Busch was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 15.141 seconds and a speed of 126.729 mph (203.951 km/h).


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Qualifying
Kyle Larson scored the pole for the race with a time of 15.015 and a speed of 127.792 mph (205.661 km/h).


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Media, Television
NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, 2008 Bristol winner Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte and 2004 Bristol winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the call in the booth for the race. Dave Burns, Parker Kligerman, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane during the race.


2018 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Media, Radio
The Performance Racing Network had the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.


2018 Batangafo clashes
In 2018 a series of clashes occurred in the Central African Republic town of Batangafo between Anti- balaka and Ex-Séléka militias.


2018 Batangafo clashes, Fatalities
15 people were killed and 29 were injured as a result of the clashes. 20,809 people were displaced, 5,141 huts (93 percent of thetotal) and 200 houses were burnt.


2018 Batangas City Athletics season
The 2018 Tanduay Athletics Batangas season is the 1st season of the franchise in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL).


2018 Batman by-election
A by-election for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Batman took place on 17 March 2018.


2018 Batman by-election
The by-election was called as a result of the resignation on 1 February 2018 of David Feeney, the incumbent backbench Australian Labor Party MP. The ALP candidate, Ged Kearney, won the by-election.


2018 Batman by-election, Background
On 6 December 2017, amidst the ongoing citizenship crisis engulfing several MPs, Labor MP David Feeney revealed that he was unable to produce documentation confirming he had renounced citizenship of either the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland. Consequently, Feeney voluntarily referred himself to the High Court of Australia, considering his likely breach of Section 44 of the Constitution of Australia.


2018 Batman by-election, Background
By 19 January 2018, Feeney remained unable to produce any documentary evidence from British or Irish authorities that he took steps to renounce his citizenship and entitlements, and the High Court granted him an extension to 1 February to allow his legal team to continue their search for the relevant documents. At a press conference on 1 February 2018, Feeney announced he would resign from the seat and from politics effective immediately, choosing not to stand as a candidate at the by-election. The date for the by-election was set at 17 March 2018, the same day as the South Australian state election.


2018 Batman by-election, Background
The seat was fought by the incumbent Labor Party and the Greens, who received a 9.6% swing towards them in the previous election. Despite finishing first in the primary vote, Greens' candidate Alex Bhathal was defeated by Feeney on the two-candidate-preferred vote 51%-49% at the previous election. Feeney had held the seat for the Labor Party since 2013. It was the sixth time Bhathal had contested the seat, having previously run in 2001, 2004, 2010, 2013 and 2016. The Australian Electoral Commission confirmed that 111,857 people were enrolled to vote in the by-election.


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup
The 2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup was a professional tennis tournament played on carpet courts. It was the 22nd edition of the tournament which was part of the 2018 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Eckental, Germany between 29 October and 4 November 2018.


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following player received entry into the singles main draw as an alternate:


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup – Doubles
Sander Arends and Roman Jebavý were the defending champions but only Arends chose to defend his title, partnering Romain Arneodo. Arends lost in the semifinals to Hugo Nys and Jonny O'Mara.


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup – Doubles
Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies won the title after defeating Nys and O'Mara 6–1, 6–4 in the final.


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup – Singles
Maximilian Marterer was the defending champion but chose not to defend his title.


2018 Bauer Watertechnology Cup – Singles
Antoine Hoang won the title after defeating Ruben Bemelmans 7–5, 6–3 in the final.


2018 Bavarian state election
The 2018 Bavarian state election took place on 14 October 2018 to elect the 180 members of the 18th Landtag of Bavaria. The outgoing government was a majority of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), led by Minister President Markus Söder.


2018 Bavarian state election
The CSU recorded its worst result since 1950 with 37% of votes, a decline of over ten percentage points. The SPD, which had previously been the second largest party, fell to fifth place with just 10%. The Greens gained 9 points and emerged as the second strongest party with 17.5%. The Free Voters of Bavaria (FW) gained 2.6 points and finished third with 11.6% of the total vote. The Alternative for Germany (AfD), which ran in Bavaria for the first time, placed fourth with 10%. The Free Democratic Party (FDP), which failed to enter the Landtag in 2013, narrowly re-entered with 5.1%, becoming the smallest party. Turnout rose to 72%, up 9 points from under 64% in 2013.


2018 Bavarian state election
The election was influenced by the condition of the federal CDU/CSU–SPD government following two crises in the preceding months: the so-called asylum quarrel in June and July followed by the controversy around Hans-Georg Maaßen in September. CSU leader Horst Seehofer played a major role in both events. Four days before the Bavarian election, federal SPD leader Andrea Nahles criticised Chancellor Angela Merkel, accusing her of a "lack of leadership".


2018 Bavarian state election
As a result of the election, the CSU lacked a majority and formed a coalition government with the Free Voters.


2018 Bavarian state election, Election date and preparation deadlines
According to the Bavarian Constitution, the election must be held on a Sunday "at the earliest 59 months, at the latest 62 months" after the preceding state elections which took place on 15 September 2013. This would theoretically allow an election date between 19 August and 11 November 2018, but in practice the elections since 1978 have always taken place between mid-September and mid-October. The Bavarian state government proposed 14 October 2018 as the election date on 9 January 2018 and officially set it on 20 February after hearing the parties to the state parliament.


2018 Bavarian state election, Election date and preparation deadlines
The deadline for determining the population figures, which are decisive for the distribution of the 180 Landtag mandates among the seven Bavarian administrative districts and a possible new division of the constituencies, was 15 June 2016 (33 months after the election of the previous Landtag). On this basis, the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior had to submit a constituency report to the Landtag until 36 months after the election This was done on 6 September 2016.


2018 Bavarian state election, Election date and preparation deadlines
Delegates to the internal constituency meetings could be appointed at the earliest 43 months after the preceding election, i.e. since 16 April 2017. The actual district candidates had been eligible since 16 July 2017.


2018 Bavarian state election, Election date and preparation deadlines
The parties and other organised electoral groups which had not been represented continuously in the Bavarian Land Parliament or in the German Bundestag since their last election on the basis of their own election proposals (CDU, CSU, SPD, Free Voters of Bavaria, Alliance 90/The Greens, FDP, Die Linke, AfD) had to notify their intention to participate to the State Election Commissioner by the 90th day before the election, i.e. by 16 July 2018 at the latest. The actual election proposals and any necessary signatures had to be submitted by 2 August 2018.


2018 Bavarian state election, Electoral system
Bavaria, in line with the rest of the country, uses mixed-member proportional representation to elect its members of the Landtag. Party representation is not apportioned statewide, the distribution of seats takes place separately within the seven administrative districts (Regierungsbezirke), which are referred to in the electoral law as constituencies. The constituencies are divided into districts in which one member is directly elected. The number of single member districts is about half the number of seats in the constituency.


2018 Bavarian state election, Electoral system
In contrast to the Bundestag election law, the distribution of seats by proportional representation takes into account the parties' aggregate first (district) votes combined with their second (constituency) votes, i.e. both the first and second votes affect the distribution of seats in the Landtag, as opposed to just the second votes, which is the norm elsewhere in the country. If a party wins more district seats in a constituency than it would be entitled to based on a strictly proportional system (these extra seats are termed overhang seats), this seats are added to the constituency.


2018 Bavarian state election, Electoral system
To compensate the other parties for the overhang, leveling seats are added at the constituency level too. There is no statewide adjustment of the seats. Only parties and groups of voters who obtain at least 5% of the total votes (sum of first and second votes) in Bavaria participate in the distribution of seats. This threshold also applies to winning single-member districts; a party will forfeit all its district seats that it won if the party did not meet the 5% statewide threshold, with the forfeited district seats going to the second-place candidate.


2018 Bavarian state election, Electoral system
Unlike the other German states (and also countries using MMP), Bavaria uses an open-list system for its party-list seats. Voters not only cast a vote for a candidate in their district, but they also cast a vote for a list candidate in their region. For the distribution of list seats, all district candidates are also constituency candidates with their parties. The party may also nominate regional-only candidates. To prevent double voting, the constituency ballots in each district omit the candidates running in that district.


2018 Bavarian state election, Electoral system
A candidate (if he or she did not win his or her district) is ranked within his or her list by the number of first votes he or she receives within the district plus the number of second votes he or she receives from voters elsewhere in the region. In this manner, voters collectively can produce a list that is different from what the party submitted, which can result in the defeat of candidates that would have been elected (and vice versa) had the election taken place under a closed-list system.


2018 Bavarian state election, Boundary changes
In the statutory constituency report of September 2016, the state government stated that the numerical distribution of the 180 state parliament seats among the constituencies would have to be changed due to changes in the number of inhabitants. It was recommended that a seat previously to be awarded in the Lower Franconia constituency be allocated to the Upper Bavaria constituency.


2018 Bavarian state election, Boundary changes
Within Upper Bavaria, the additional seat was used to reshape the single member districts in the state capital of Munich, as two of them — Giesing and Milbertshofen — exceeded the average population by more than 15 percent. Upper Bavaria now has 31 single member districts for the 2018 elections, nine of which are accounted for by the state capital.


2018 Bavarian state election, Starting position
Since the state elections in Bavaria in 2013, the CSU has again had the absolute majority of seats, as it did from 1962 to 2008. In December 2017, however, Minister President of Bavaria Horst Seehofer (CSU) finally declared his renunciation of the top candidate in the state elections in Bavaria 2018, partly due to the poor performance of the CSU in the 2017 Bundestag elections. In March 2018, he also resigned from his office as Minister President of Bavaria before the end of the parliamentary term. The former Bavarian Finance Minister Markus Söder was elected as the new top CSU candidate and later also as Minister President of Bavaria in the state parliament.


2018 Bavarian state election, Campaign, CSU
In 2018, the CSU Markus Söder's government enacted the Kreuzpflicht, an obligation to display crosses at the entrance of public buildings. Söder has stated that the crosses are not to be seen as Christian symbols, but as symbols of Bavarian cultural identity.


2018 Bavarian state election, Campaign, CSU
Some observers have described the Kreuzpflicht as a measure to appeal to voters deserting the Christian democratic conservative CSU for the right-wing nationalist AfD party. Also the CSU interior minister Horst Seehofer has taken a harder line on immigration.


2018 Bavarian state election, Parties
The table below lists parties represented in the 17th Landtag of Bavaria.


2018 Bavarian state election, Leaders' debate
A Leaders' debate between Minister President Markus Söder (CSU) and Ludwig Hartmann (Alliance 90/The Greens) took place on 26 September 2018. The Bayerischer Rundfunk justified the party selection with the result of the Bayerntrend of September 12, 2018, according to which CSU and Greens can hope for the most votes in the election. SPD Secretary-General Uli Grötsch described this decision as "completely absurd". A programme with representatives of the other five parties, whose survey results were above or close to the five percent hurdle, followed on 28 September 2018: Natascha Kohnen (SPD), Hubert Aiwanger (Free Voters), Martin Sichert (AfD), Martin Hagen (FDP) and Ates Gürpinar (The Left). The first programme was moderated by BR editor-in-chief Christian Nitsche, the second by Ursula Heller.


2018 Bavarian state election, Opinion polling, Policy areas relevant to elections
On behalf of the RTL/n-tv Trendbarometer, Forsa Institute interviewed the survey participants about the "biggest problems at state level". In Bavaria, 34 percent of those surveyed named the CSU and Prime Minister Markus Söder, 28 percent named refugees, and 26 percent named "the situation on the housing market".


2018 Bavarian state election, Opinion polling, Policy areas relevant to elections
Infratest dimap asked respondents to the ARD primary election survey which topic is very important for their election decision. In the order of most percentage points these were school and education policy (55%), nature conservation in Bavaria (46%), creation of affordable housing (45%), reduction of injustice in society (41%), security and police (40%), regulation of immigration (39%), the behaviour of Horst Seehofer in the federal government (26%), the cooperation of CDU, CSU and SPD in the federal government (21%).


2018 Bavarian state election, Voter turnout
The voter turnout in the city of Munich remained high. Until 2 p.m. it was 54.6 percent including the postal voters. In 2013, the turnout at that time was 49.7 percent. The final total turnout was recorded as 72.3% of eligible voters.


2018 Bavarian state election, Aftermath, Polls on a favorite coalition
The percentages indicate the proportion of respondents who would most like the particular coalition available for selection. The missing values to 100% made no statement.


2018 Bavarian state election, Aftermath, State government formation
Before the election, CSU faction leader Thomas Kreuzer declared that the CSU would not form a coalition with the AfD or the Greens after the election.


2018 Bavarian state election, Aftermath, State government formation
The CSU agreed on a coalition deal to govern with the Free Voters of Bavaria on 4 November 2018.


2018 Baylor Bears football team
The 2018 Baylor Bears football team represented Baylor University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bears played their home games at the McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas. They competed as a member of the Big 12 Conference and were led by second-year head coach Matt Rhule. The team improved on its 1–11 record from last season, as they would finish 7–6, 4–5 in Big 12 play to finish in a tie for 5th place. They were invited to the Texas Bowl, where they defeated Vanderbilt.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Previous season
The Bears finished the 2017 season 1–11, 1–8 in Big 12 play to finish in ninth place.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Preseason, Big 12 media poll
The Big 12 media poll was released on July 12, 2018 with the Bears predicted to finish in ninth place.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Schedule
Baylor announced its football schedule on October 26, 2017. They will play 12 games with 6 games at home, 3 among non-conference and 3 Big 12 teams, and 6 away games, against 1 non-conference opponents and 5 Big 12 teams in the 2018 Big 12 Conference football season.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Game summaries, Kansas State
Baylor held a slight edge in the pregame analysis. Coming into the game Baylor was considered better than they were at this same time last year and has won 3 games (Kansas, Texas-San Antonio, and Abilene Christian), the Bears have also lost 2 (Duke, Oklahoma). In Baylor's previous game against Oklahoma, they achieved 493 yards of offense in their loss—something expected to be a challenge for Kansas State on defense.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Game summaries, Kansas State
The game started with Kansas State holding the lead at the end of the first and second quarters. Baylor pulled ahead in the third quarter but missed several field goals. Baylor's Charlie Brewer threw for 296 yards and Kansas State's Alex Barnes rushed for 250 yards (he ran for 129 yards and four touchdowns in the 2016 matchup also at Baylor).


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Game summaries, Kansas State
Kansas State had its share of mistakes:  K-State missed a field goal and an extra point and were also ineffective on kickoff returns. Kansas State also gave up a fumble on the kickoff return after a controversial play review to start the third quarter and Baylor scored a touchdown two plays later. Wildcat turnovers and penalties led to three touchdowns for Baylor. They also had problems with a punt return they recovered and an extra point was blocked.


2018 Baylor Bears football team, Game summaries, Kansas State
Baylor's Connor Martin had a rough day as the kicker, missing three field goals and an extra point, yet among all that he ended up kicking the game-winning field goal from 29 yards with 8 seconds left in the game. The final score was a Baylor victory, 37-34.


2018 BeNe Ladies Tour
The 2018 BeNe Ladies Tour was the fifth edition of the BeNe Ladies Tour, a women's cycling stage race in the Netherlands. It is rated by the UCI as a category 2.1 race.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
The 2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, also known as the Huawei Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup Dubai 2018 for sponsorship reasons, was the eighth edition of the Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, an annual international beach soccer tournament contested by men's national teams.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
Held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates since its inception, this year's event occurred between 6 and 10 November. The tournament was organised by the Dubai Sports Council (DSC) and Beach Soccer Worldwide (BSWW).


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
After the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, the Intercontinental Cup is the biggest tournament in the current international beach soccer calendar. Similar to the FIFA Confederations Cup, eight nations will take part, with one team representing each of the six continental football confederations as well as the current World Cup champions, Brazil, and the hosts, the United Arab Emirates.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
The tournament started with a round robin group stage. The winners and runners-up from each group advanced to the knockout stage, a series of single-elimination matches, beginning with the semi-finals and ending with the final. Consolation matches were also played to determine other final rankings.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
The season-ending Beach Soccer Stars awards were also presented in Dubai as a conclusion to the tournament.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup
Brazil were the defending champions but lost to Russia in the semi-finals, ultimately finishing third; the defeat ended a 66-game winning streak for Canarinhos, their last loss dating back to the 2015 World Cup (also against Russia). Iran beat Russia in the final to claim their second Intercontinental Cup crown.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Participating teams
The following eight teams took part including the hosts, current World Cup winners and one of the best performing nations from each of the six regional championships hosted by the confederations of FIFA. However, CONMEBOL did not enter a regional performer this year, so UEFA entered two teams.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Participating teams
Overall, Europe and Asia were represented by two nations; Africa, South America, North America and Oceania, one nation each.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Venue
The tournament took place in a new part of Dubai for the second consecutive year; this edition is held at an arena on Kite Beach, Jumeirah 3, with a capacity of 3,500.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Venue
Speaking at the draw event, BSWW Vice-president Joan Cusco was welcoming of the change of location back to a beach venue saying, "this is where we belong". (The previous edition was held in an inland area of Dubai for the first time). On the change of venue, DSC General Secretary Saeed Hareb stated the Council was in the process of finding a permanent home for the Intercontinental Cup.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Draw
The draw to split the eight teams into two groups of four took place on 10 October at the Dubai Sports Council headquarters at 11:00 GST (UTC+4).


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Draw
For the purposes of the draw, the nations were divided into fours sets, Pots 1–4, shown in the table below. From each pot, the first team drawn out was placed into Group A; the other team was drawn into Group B. The teams were allocated to specific positions in their respective groups via the drawing of balls from a further two pots; for the teams entering Group A, Pot A, which contained the positions A1–A4 and for the teams entering Group B, Pot B, containing the positions B1–B4.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Draw
The hosts, the United Arab Emirates, were automatically allocated to position A1.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Group stage
Matches are listed as local time in Dubai, GST (UTC+4)


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, 5th–8th place play-offs
The teams finishing in third and fourth place were knocked out of title-winning contention, receding to play in consolation matches to determine 5th through 8th place in the final standings.


2018 Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup, Knockout stage
The group winners and runners-up progressed to the knockout stage to continue to compete for the title.


2018 Beijing Sinobo Guoan F.C. season
The  2018 Beijing Sinobo Guoan F.C. season  was their 15th consecutive season in the Chinese Super League, established in the 2004, and 28th consecutive season in the top flight of Chinese football. They competed in the Chinese Super League and Chinese FA Cup.


2018 Beijing Sinobo Guoan F.C. season, First team
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2018 Belarusian First League
2018 Belarusian First League is the 28th season of 2nd level football in Belarus. It started in April and finished in November 2018.


2018 Belarusian First League, Team changes from 2017 season
Two best teams of 2017 Belarusian First League (Luch Minsk and Smolevichi-STI) were promoted to Belarusian Premier League. They were replaced by two lowest placed teams of 2017 Belarusian Premier League table (Slavia Mozyr and Naftan Novopolotsk).


2018 Belarusian First League, Team changes from 2017 season
Two lowest placed teams of the last season (Osipovichi and Neman-Agro Stolbtsy) relegated to the Second League. They were replaced by two best teams of 2017 Second League (UAS Zhitkovichi and Chist).


2018 Belarusian First League, Team changes from 2017 season
In March 2018, Torpedo Minsk were granted additional promotion to Belarusian Premier League to replace Krumkachy Minsk (who failed to obtain a Premier League and were demoted to the Second League). Torpedo were not replaced any other team due to the lack of applicants, and the league was reduced to 15 clubs for the season.


2018 Belarusian Premier League
The 2018 Belarusian Premier League was the 28th season of top-tier football in Belarus. BATE Borisov were the defending champions, having won their 12th consecutive league title and 14th overall last year, and successfully defended their crown.


2018 Belarusian Premier League, Teams
The bottom two teams from the 2017 season (Slavia Mozyr and Naftan Novopolotsk) were relegated to the 2018 Belarusian First League. They were replaced by Luch Minsk and Smolevichi, champions and runners-up of the 2017 Belarusian First League respectively.


2018 Belarusian Premier League, Teams
Before the start of the season, Krumkachy Minsk were excluded from the league, after repeatedly missing deadlines for providing necessary licensing documents and pay off the salary debts to the players. The decision was made final on 19 March. They were replaced by Torpedo Minsk (3rd placed team of 2017 Belarusian First League).


2018 Belarusian Premier League, Results
Each team plays home-and-away once against every other team for a total of 30 matches played each.


2018 Belarusian Super Cup
The 2018 Belarusian Super Cup was held on 10 March 2018 between the 2017 Belarusian Premier League champions BATE Borisov and the 2016–17 Belarusian Cup winners Dinamo Brest. Dinamo Brest won the match 2–1 and won the trophy for the first time.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections
28th Convocation Republic of Belarus deputies to Local Councils of Deputies elections are elections to Belarus Local Councils to Deputies elections conducted on 18 February 2018. Electoral campaign started in November 2017. Citizens of the respective administrative subdivision elect the Council for a term of four years under procedure set within the Electoral Code of Republic of Belarus.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections
Deputies of House of Representatives, and deputies to Local Councils of Deputies elections are conducted in single-mandate constituencies.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections
Local Councils' deputies elections have no turnout benchmark, conducted in one voting, where candidate having plurality vote wins.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections
All Belarusian voters are entitled to vote preliminary, with no official confirmation of reasons of inability to come to voting premises in the main voting day required. The voter is not required to show internal passport: to get ballot one suffice to have any identification document (driving licence, student ticket and so on). Agitation is allowed in the preliminary voting period. CEC does not invite foreign observers, apart from some representatives of the diplomatic corps, to municipal elections, as it is not provided in the legislation.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, General Information
On 14 November 2017 President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko signed decree # 410 "On appointment of Local Councils of Deputies elections".


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, General Information
Out of 18,111 deputies of 1,309 Local Councils of Deputies most represent Rural Councils (1,152 Councils):


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Electoral system
The elections were held under plurality vote. A citizen of Republic of Belarus of 18 years of age are entitled to be elected a deputy to Local Council of Deputies. Citizens living or working on the territory of the respective Local Council of Deputies are entiteled to be nominated as candidates. This right as well implies to citizens working in organizations related to fullmilment of needs of residents or social development of the territory of the respective Local Council of Deputies, though such organization located on the territory of the other Local Council of Deputies.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Electoral system
A political party is entitled to nominate only one candidate to deputy amongst its members within single House of Representatives or respective Local Council of Deputies electoral district. A candidate receiving most votes is considered as elected to the Local Council of Deputies. In case of one-candidate election, such candidate is considered elected if one receives more than half of votes given.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Nomination procedure
Legislation sets a number of requirements towards citizens willing to nominate themselves as a candidate to deputy to Local Councils of Deputies:


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Nomination procedure
A citizen is entitled to nominate oneself in one of electoral districts of the Local Council of Deputies of each territorial level (Regional, District, and Rural Council of Deputies).


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Nomination procedure
Nationals of Russian Federeation with permanent residence on the territory of Republic of Belarus are entiteled be nominated as candidates to deputies of Local Councils of Deputies.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Nomination procedure
Citizens, working in organizations related to fullmilment of needs of residents or social development of the territory of the respective Local Council of Deputies, though such organization located on the territory of the other Local Council of Deputies, are entitled to nominate oneself as a candidate to deputy of Local Council of Deputies, even having no residence or job on the territory of such Council. Such legal norm is usually implied to the employees of organizations located in cities that are the centers of several subdivisions. Such rule does not imply towards political parties and NGOs.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Candidate registration
Out of 22,278 registered candidates to deputy 21,227 (95.28 %) were not political party members, while political parties nominated 1,051 candidates (4.72 %), with most of party candidates nominated by the Communist Party (1.84 %) and Liberal-Democratic Party (1.02 %). Political party members are mostly nominated to deputies of Mnsk-city, Regional and District Councils of Deputies.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Candidate registration
Registration of public interest groups on voters signature collection by candidates to deputies of 28 Convocation Local Councils as of 25 December 2017:


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting
In a period of 15 days before elections, voting stations commissions represent the cititens the voters lists. Voters are entitled to seek for liquidation of mistakes in the lists, including seeking for such liquidations in trials. Preliminary voting for voters not able to stay in their residence location in the voting day is organized 5 days before the elections date. Voters, unable to come to voting station in the election day can be provided with voting on their immediate location.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting
Preliminary election was held on 13–17 February 2018. According to CEC data, 34.95% voters took part in the preliminary election until its final day. In the main voting day, voting stations worked from 8 am till 8 pm, and, according to official CEC data, the turnover reached 5.3 mln voters (77.2%) till the moment of voting stations closure. Out of 18,111 districts, one electoral district of Yelʹsk District of Gomel Region failed to hold elections due to the only candidate's detention for receiving a bribe.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting, Fraud
789 observers of "For just elections" campaign" participated in the elections monitoring, 114 of who monitored the process of preliminary voting, covering 54 voting stations in 22 settlements, including Minsk. Upong the results of monitoring, the campaigns observers concluded the official results of deputies to Local Councils elections do not represent real citizens' volition. Moreover, in several voting stations observers were prohibited to take video and photoshots of vote-counting process in the day of elections, reasoning such restrictions with only journalists being entitled to do so.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting, Elections boycott
Conservative Christian Party – BPF did not participate in 2018 municipal elections. Party leadership informed the party did not will to create the regime bogus of so-called "elections". Meanwhile, party conducted electoral control of the process. First of all it counted the number of people coming to vote to show regime in the light of its lies existing as a fact of life.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting, Elections boycott
Belarusian Social Democratic Assembly, led by Stanislav Shushkevich, did not participate in 2018 municipal elections. It's a principal position of the party, having been consistently ignoring several electoral campaigns in a row. "Results of the previous elections, when government "turned off" several democratic candidates, show us we do everything right. So, how many such elections we need for everyone to finally understand that there are no free elections in Belarus?! BSDA party understands it's a vain deal, thus it did not participate in the elections at all", — BSDA leader Stanislav Shushkevich told on 19 February.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting, Elections boycott
Mikola Statkevich, leader of Belarusian Social Democratic Party (People's Assembly), told municipal elections topic is not worth discussing. "This municipal elections do not decide anything, no vote is count, and people still do not believe the government. We have many young party members, and we didn't oppose them to try their hand and educate themselves in these elections privatelly. This is the best way of learning. However, as the previous "elections" showed, to go here and there to ask for a piece of power is humiliating and lost case. Supporters of "peacefull change" were not given a seat even in any rural council",- Statkevich told.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Voting, Elections boycott
Belarusian Labour Party, and Republican Party did not participate in elections.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Results, General
According to voting results, out of 18,110 deputies to Local Councils of Deputies elect, vast majority or 17,652 deputies are not members to any political party, and only 457 deputies are members to political parties consisting 2.5 %. The most represented parties in Local Councils are supporters of Alexander Lukashenko: Communist Party (309 seats) and RPLJ (127 seats). Among opposition no candidate managed to win the vote, only 4 members of Liberal Democratic Party positioning itself as constructive opposition managed to succeed. 21 national of Russian Federation managed to be elected as 28th Convocation Local Council Deputy.


2018 Belarusian municipal elections, Results, General
The elections resulted in turnover over 77 %, with 35 % voted preliminarily. In a single electoral district of Yelʹsk District Council of Deputies of Gomel Region, elections did not take place, due to the only candidate's withdrawal a day before the elections. 48 % of deputies elected are women, 56 % elected to Local Councils before, one out of three works in science, education, and healthcare sphere, and one out of five works in agriculture. 4 % deputies are under 31, and 2 % represent political parties.


2018 Belgian Athletics Championships
The 2018 Belgian Athletics Championships (Dutch: Belgische kampioenschappen atletiek 2018, French: Championnats de Belgique d'athlétisme 2018) was the year's national outdoor track and field championships for Belgium. It was held on 7 and 8 July at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels.


2018 Belgian Athletics Championships
The 10,000 m for men and women and the 3000 m steeplechase for women were held separately in Naimette-Xhovémont on 5 May. The hammer throw events took place in Nivelles. It served as the selection meeting for Belgium at the 2018 European Athletics Championships.


2018 Belgian Cup Final
The 2018 Belgian Cup Final, named Croky Cup after the sponsor, was the 63rd Belgian Cup final and took place on 17 March 2018. The match was played between Genk, who qualified on 6 February 2018, and Standard Liège who qualified two days later. In a dull match without many chances, Standard Liège won after extra time with the only goal coming from Renaud Emond at the beginning of extra time. As a result, Standard Liège qualified for the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League Group stage.


2018 Belgian Cup Final
Standard had already won the cup seven times (out of 16 finals), with their last win in 2016 against Club Brugge. Genk made its fifth appearance in the Belgian Cup Final and had won on all four previous occasions. The 2000 Belgian Cup Final also featured Genk and Standard, with Genk overcoming an early deficit to win by four goals to one.


2018 Belgian Cup Final, Match, Summary
On an ice cold evening, both teams offered a very meagre display as the match started with many fouls and fierce duels, but without any chances. About 15 minutes into the match, a header from Renaud Emond that landed on top of the goal was the first meaningful event. As both teams did not succeed to set up successful combinations, they started trying long range shots, but neither Răzvan Marin nor Ibrahima Seck managed to keep their shots on target. Nikos Karelis did, but his shot was correctly disallowed for offside. Key players Alejandro Pozuelo and Mehdi Carcela were nowhere to be seen and only set pieces some small chances in the remainder of the first half, with both Christian Luyindama and Joseph Aidoo putting their headers off target.


2018 Belgian Cup Final, Match, Summary
The second half did not prove to be much better, Standard Liège started best with dangerous long distance kicks from Edmilson Junior and Collins Fai but still the match remained without a single effort on target. Alejandro Pozuelo was very much invisible, but almost benefited from a mistake from Luis Pedro Cavanda, before his assist was snatched away by Jean-François Gillet just before Nikos Karelis could get to it. A deflected shot from Răzvan Marin caused some minor excitement at the other end of the pitch. It took until the very end of the second half before a first attempt on target was made, Joseph Aidoo almost headed in the winner on a corner kick, but a stunning reflex from Jean-François Gillet denied his effort.


2018 Belgian Cup Final, Match, Summary
In the extra-time, Standard Liège started furiously, with a back-heel pass from Paul-José M'Poku setting up Mehdi Carcela to give a perfect assist for Renaud Emond who headed in the ball past Danny Vukovic. Genk now had to advance quickly and almost got lucky as a cross from Bojan Nastić nearly landed in goal. A free-kick from Ruslan Malinovskyi just missed the goal. In the second half of the extra-time, Genk was not able to get past Gillet, despite efforts from Leandro Trossard. The game had also become extra fierce, forcing referee Jonathan Lardot to give several yellow cards, eventually even sending off Bojan Nastić just minutes before time.


2018 Belgian Figure Skating Championships
The 2018 Belgian Figure Skating Championships (Dutch: Belgisch Kampioenschap 2018; French: Championnat de Belgique 2018) took place between 1 and 2 December 2017 in Liedekerke. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles and ladies' singles across the levels of senior, junior, advanced novice, as well as the age-group levels of minime/miniem A, B, and C. There were no competitors in the senior men's event as Jorik Hendrickx withdrew.


2018 Belgian Grand Prix
The 2018 Belgian Grand Prix (formally the Formula 1 2018 Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 26 August 2018 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Stavelot, Belgium. The race was the thirteenth round of the 2018 Formula One World Championship and marked the 74th running of the Belgian Grand Prix and the 61st time the race was held at Spa-Francorchamps and 51st time as a round of the World Championship.


2018 Belgian Grand Prix
The race was won by Scuderia Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel ahead of Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. The victory moved Vettel ahead of Alain Prost in all-time career Formula One victories.


2018 Belgian Grand Prix, Report, Background
After going into administration during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, Force India arrived in Belgium under new ownership. A consortium led by Lawrence Stroll purchased the racing assets and operations of Force India through a company named Racing Point UK Ltd. The original team, Sahara Force India, was excluded from the Constructors' Championship due to their inability to participate in the remaining races, allowing the new team known as Racing Point Force India to apply for a late entry and start their participation in the championship in Belgium.


2018 Belgian Grand Prix, Report, Championship standings before the race
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton entered the round with a 24-point lead over Sebastian Vettel in the Drivers' Championship. In the World Constructors' Championship, Mercedes led Ferrari by 10 points.


2018 Belgian Grand Prix, Report, Practice
McLaren reserve driver Lando Norris made his first appearance at a Grand Prix weekend, replacing Fernando Alonso during the first practice session.