Azerbaijan's Ruling Party Retains Majority in Controversial Election

Azerbaijan's ruling party retained its majority in a snap parliamentary election, the first since recapturing Karabakh. The OSCE criticized the election for not meeting democratic standards. Preliminary results show President Ilham Aliyev's party winning 68 out of 125 seats amidst a turnout of 37.3%.

Azerbaijan's ruling party retained its majority in Sunday's snap parliamentary election, preliminary results indicated. This marks the country's first vote since recapturing the breakaway territory of Karabakh. The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a rights watchdog, criticized the election, citing it fell short of democratic standards.

President Ilham Aliyev's party is on course to secure 68 out of 125 seats in parliament, based on preliminary results from the Central Election Commission reported by TASS news agency. The outgoing parliament had 69 seats controlled by the ruling party. Over 2 million citizens in the energy-rich nation cast their ballots, resulting in a 37.3% turnout as reported by the Central Election Commission chief Mazahir Panakhov.

Exit polls indicated that several other seats would be occupied by ostensibly independent candidates who generally support the government, as well as minor pro-government parties. OSCE election monitors observed that the election campaign was barely visible. The OSCE mission issued a statement criticizing the restrictive political and legal environment, which it argued stifled genuine pluralism and resulted in a non-competitive contest.

(With inputs from agencies.)