Exit polls be taken from majority of Azerbaijani voters
By Aynur Karimova
The ELS Independent Studies Center will conduct exit polls at 1,180 polling stations in 118 election constituencies during the Azerbaijani parliamentary elections on November 1, according to a statement by Irada Yagubova, the chairperson of the ELS Independent Studies Center, at a press conference on October 28.
She said that exit polls would cover voters in all regions of Azerbaijan, with the exception of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.
"The results of exit polling will be announced by 20:00 on the day of voting," Yagubova added.
The ELS Independent Studies Center enjoys extensive experience in conducting exit polls and has been doing so for all elections since 2008. The ELS Independent Studies Center employs a reserve staff of 10,000 persons for this purpose.
Yagubova went on to add that trainings for persons who will conduct the polls have been completed, and the necessary documents will be sent to the regions of Azerbaijan starting from today.
"About 2,600 persons will be involved in conducting of exit polls in parliamentary elections. We are particularly trying to involve the youth in this work in order to build their electoral experience," she noted.
The ELS Independent Studies Center is not the only organization that will conduct exit polls on Election Day.
The Central Election Commission of Azerbaijan has already registered three more organization: the Rey Monitoring Center, the Azerbaijani youth’s rights protection center and the League for Protection of Citizens' Rights.
Speaking at the press conference, Rizvan Abbasov, the Director of the Rey Monitoring Center, said that his organization would survey voters at 60 polling stations in 10 election constituencies during the upcoming election.
The Rey Monitoring Center also has great experience in conducting such polls. The center had conducted exit polls during the presidential and prior parliamentary elections.
Abbasov noted that exit polls will be given to voters in Baku and Sumgayit. More than 100 people will be involved in surveying voters on voluntary basis. The results of exit polling will be announced after the election is completed.
Roughly 5.2 million Azerbaijani citizens, who enjoy the right to vote, will come to polling stations on November 1 to elect their representatives to the supreme legislative body of the country.
This year, 769 candidates - the representatives of 15 political parties and one bloc of parties, representing seven parties - will compete for seats in Azerbaijan's Parliament.
International organizations and foreign media are showing significant interest in the upcoming parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan.
To date, about 500 international observers from 27 countries have registered at the CEC for observing the election in Azerbaijan. Some 60,000 local observers will monitor the voting process.
Voting preparations will begin at 7:30 a.m. on November 1 in polling stations in Azerbaijan in accordance with the timetable.
Chairmen of the electoral commissions will declare polling stations open and the ballot boxes will be sealed at 7:50 a.m.
They will also announce the commencement of voting at 08:00 a.m. and the completion of the voting process at 7:00 p.m.
Information on the progress and results of the voting will be provided by the Information Center of the Secretariat of the CEC during the day at 10.00 a.m., 12.00 a.m., 3.00 p.m., 5.00 p.m. and 7.00 p.m.
The CEC has established 5,415 permanent and 132 temporary polling stations.
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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova
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