Presidential Elections in Azerbaijan
20 October 2008
On October 15th Presidential elections took place in Azerbaijan. According to the official results of the Central Election Commission from the 5.351 polling stations incumbent President Ilham Aliyev received 88.73% of the vote. He was followed by Igbal Agazade (Umid ('Hope') party) with 2.86%, Fazil Gazanfaroglu (Great Creation Party) with 2.47%, Gudrat Gasanguliyev (Unified Popular Front party) with 2.28%, Gulamgusein Alibeili (independent candidate) with 2.23%, Fuad Aliyev (Liberal Democratic Party) with 0.78% and Khafiz Gadzhiyev (Muasir (Contemporary) Musavat Party) with 0.65%. The results from eight polling stations were annulled due to registered irregularities.
Those irregularities included the issuing of several ballot papers to the same voter and not ink-marking some voters.
Many international observers have spoken of great improvements of the election process compaired to previous years as well as to other countries in the region. Head of the CIS Parliamentary Assembly mission Svetlana Orlova described the elections as largely “legitimate, open, and transparent”. US Department of State spokesperson Sean McCormack also stated that “the assessment of the monitors on the ground was that it was an improvement over past elections”, but added that he is awaiting the final report of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) before making any official statements.
The OSCE issued a statement concerning the elections on October 16th saying that " the election was conducted in a peaceful manner, but was characterized by a lack of robust competition and vibrant political discourse facilitated by the media, and thus did not reflect all principles of a meaningful and pluralistic democratic election”. Andres Herkel, Head of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) delegation, agreed, saying that “while the voting day can be generally viewed positively and described as marking considerable progress, election observation is done against a broader background of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. In this connection, the issue of freedom of the media in Azerbaijan remains a source of further concern".
Marie Anne Isler Beguin, Head of the European Parliament delegation, also mentioned "a lack of genuine competition, due to the boycott of major opposition parties”, and noted that “the absence of a real campaign [has] to be deeply deplored".
Concerning the latter point, the OSCE report notes that the authorities “made efforts to create more equitable conditions for candidates, and the election was organized in an overall efficient manner, although shortcomings were observed on election day, in particular during the crucial phase of the vote count and tabulation”. Furthermore, “the campaign was generally low-key, with the incumbent candidate not campaigning personally, and other candidates commanding little apparent public support”.
The CEC will now submit its final report to the Constitutional Court, which is to confirm the results within four days. After this, the re-elected President is to be inaugurated within three days
Sources: OSCE, today.az, APA news agency
