BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 7. Election is a national celebration of democracy, Secretary General of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) Mohammad Reza Majidi told Trend.
"I congratulate the people and government of Azerbaijan on this national holiday because the election is a celebration and a national triumph of democracy. We have just visited several polling stations and seen the election procedure here in Baku. Everything is going on within the framework of the legislation. The result of the election will further strengthen the pillars and foundations of democracy in the region. The new President of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly from this month will be the Parliament of Azerbaijan. And as the Secretary General of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly, I am very happy to be here today among the people of Azerbaijan," he said.
From 08:00 (GMT+4), polling stations will be open for voters, and close at 19:00. The Central Election Commission Secretariat's Information Center will share preliminary updates on the voting process and results at 12:00, 15:00, 17:00, and 19:00.
Candidates for the presidency in the upcoming election include incumbent President Ilham Aliyev (New Azerbaijan Party), independent contenders Zahid Oruj and Fuad Aliyev, Razi Nurullayev (National Front Party), Fazil Mustafa (Great Order Party), Elshad Musayev (Great Azerbaijan Party), and Gudrat Gasanguliyev (Whole Azerbaijan Popular Front Party).
The voter roll boasts 6,478,623 people who will cast their votes across 6,537 polling stations throughout the country.
A total of 90,372 observers are registered to monitor the election, with 790 of them representing 72 international organizations from 89 countries.
For the first time in the history of independent Azerbaijan, the upcoming election will span across the entire country, including the lands liberated from Armenian occupation in 2020. In the liberated territories, 26 polling stations have been established.
For Azerbaijani citizens residing abroad, 49 polling stations have been established in the embassies and consulates of 37 countries. This allows over 23,000 expatriates to participate in the voting process from various corners of the globe.
A robust media presence of 190 international entities is dedicated to observing the election, with 216 of their representatives officially registered as international observers.
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