Early voting began in ex-Soviet Uzbekistan Wednesday ahead of a vote in the Central Asian country expected to hand President Shavkat Mirziyoyev an easy win following a lacklustre campaign.
The July 9 poll was called by the 65-year-old reformer with hardline tendencies after he pushed through constitutional changes that could allow him to remain in power for two more terms.
The Election Commission announced in a statement Wednesday that early voting had begun in Uzbekistan, which is routinely criticised by observers for its rights record.
“To date, the campaign has been low-key, mirroring lack of opposition to the incumbent,” the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which has deployed an observation mission, said in a report this week.
Televised debates have been held without the candidates, who were instead represented by allies.
The reforms paving the way for Mirziyoyev to remain in power until 2037 passed after winning support from 90 percent of voters in an April referendum.
The changes also lengthened existing presidential terms from five to seven years.
Only five parties are officially registered in Uzbekistan and the opposition is sidelined.
The Central Asia region’s largest country by population has been ruled since 2016 by Mirziyoyev, who was re-elected in 2021 in a ballot that international observers said lacked genuine competition.
He has spearheaded a series of reforms in Uzbekistan, including a clampdown on forced labour in the cotton fields.
But activists say rights abuses persist, and authorities have shown no sign of allowing a political opposition to emerge.
Source: Macau Business