Turkmenistan's leader wins re-election with 97.69 pct of vote
By Kamila Aliyeva
Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov has won a new seven-year term by securing 97 percent of the vote, election officials announced on February 13.
The Central Election Commission (CEC) announced that the vote was democratic and had contributed to national unity.
59-year-old Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov heads the country since 2007. In 2012, he was re-elected for a new term securing 97.4 percent of the vote
This time, Berdimuhammedov was running against little-known regional government officials, lawmakers, and heads of companies on a ballot that included candidates from more than one party for the first time.
The amendments made to the Constitution in 2016, removed term limits and the 70-year-old age limit for presidential candidates, as well as extending the presidential term from five to seven years.
The presidential elections were observed by a delegation of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of OSCE and CIS observers' mission.
CIS Executive Secretary Sergei Lebedev said the election complied with democratic norms. Monitors had noted some minor irregularities but they were unlikely to have any impact on the final result, he said.
The members of the UN, SCO, and OIC, the representatives of China, the U.S., South Korea, Japan, Austria, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Iran, India, and Afghanistan were among the international observers as well.
Berdimuhamedov, while casting his vote in Ashgabat on Sunday, said that he intends to turn Turkmenistan into a major industrial power, as it is planned to build companies and enterprises aimed at producing a wide range of construction, chemical, household and other products made from local raw materials.
“In this aspect, we conduct a tremendous work,” he told reporters, stressing the importance of ensuring not only economic interests of the country, but also creating new workplaces, and opening new specializations.
"Turkmenistan's goal is joining the ranks of the industrially developed nations," he told journalists, adding that all candidates had an equal chance during the election campaign.
Turkmenistan, a former Soviet republic that borders the Caspian Sea, is the subject of avid interest from the west, Russia and China because of its natural gas reserves, which are estimated to be the fourth largest in the world.
---
Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva
Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz