BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 8. The election monitoring coalition "My Voice" has published a statement in connection with the extraordinary presidential election in Azerbaijan, Trend reports.
The statement says that the "My Voice" election monitoring coalition, established jointly by three non-governmental organizations: "The Society for the Protection of Azerbaijani Women's Rights named Dilara Aliyeva," "Azerbaijan National Branch of the International Society for Human Rights," "Protection of Human Rights and Rule of Law," has been continuously monitoring the process of the extraordinary presidential election in Azerbaijan since December 2023. The coalition ensured strong public control over the election process by keeping the public informed. The coalition identified election observers by constituency and polling station and scheduled training for them prior to election day. Before election day, the coalition met with all presidential candidates or their authorized representatives, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights' election mission, and other stakeholders to exchange information, take notes, and prepare and publicize an interim report based on observations and analysis.
On Election Day, February 7, the Coalition for Election Monitoring "My Voice" performed election observation in accordance with international standards. More than 500 coalition observers were stationed around the republic; in all areas, the observation took place in 67 electoral districts, accounting for 53.6 percent of the total number of electoral districts. Women and young people were the majority of our observers. Yesterday, the day of the election, all of the data acquired by our experienced observers was thoroughly evaluated with the cooperation of coalition experts.
As a result, our observations at polling locations in 67 stations lead us to the following conclusions:
- the elections were held freely, fairly, and transparently, with no interference in the voting process and a significant voter turnout.
- the technical equipment of polling stations, voting booths, and vote boxes satisfied the requirements outlined in the Electoral Code and other legislative acts in this sector;
- all required conditions were provided for voters' unfettered access to polling places and their voting in line with the law;
- there was no pressure on observers of the Election Monitoring Coalition "My Voice," as well as observers of international organizations, political parties, public organizations, or independent observers who observed the electoral process at polling stations where we were; no cases of obstruction of their free observation of the process were recorded; full conditions for observation were created;
- photography and videotaping at polling stations; use of Internet resources was free; no facts of interference in the work of media representatives were recorded; no complaints were registered by the Coalition at polling stations;
- no official state institutions or police representatives entered the polling stations without being summoned;
- on election day, especially at 8:00-9:00, 12:00-13:00, and 17:30-19:00, the flow of voters to the polling stations was the largest, with young people and women prevailing among them;
- the voting process at polling stations started and was completed within the stipulated timeframe; the vote count was organized following the law. Our observers noted some shortcomings of a technical nature related to the conduct of procedures that do not affect the overall result of the elections.
Last day, some political parties that refused to participate in the elections stated that "NGOs, which have been professionally engaged in election observation at the local level for years, had no opportunity to observe these elections." This is political nonsense. First and foremost, as previously said, the My Voice Election Monitoring Coalition, which we represent, comprises three non-governmental organizations (NGOs). We have monitored every election held since Azerbaijan's restoration of state independence. Furthermore, a record number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society observers monitored the February 7 elections. Approximately 7,000 election observers from 83 NGOs participated in the process. Compared to the last presidential election, the number of nationwide NGO observers increased almost four times. In addition to our coalition, there were coalitions created by various NGOs, and our colleagues also provided public control. Some nine NGOs united in these coalitions and participated in the electoral process with about 1,700 observers. Besides, a large number of individual NGOs conducted election observation throughout the country.
Based on what we witnessed on election day at 67 voting sites, we can definitely state that the unprecedented presidential election on February 7, 2024, is a significant step forward in the development of the country's democracy and political culture. The elections were free, fair, and transparent. There was an unusual level of motivation among voters to participate in the elections, as well as a positive attitude and a queue culture. The bulk of voters came with their families. Our observers also covered the elections in Karabakh and Eastern Zangazur, visiting voting stations in Khankendi, Shusha, Khojaly, Aghdere, Aghdam, Fuzuli, Khojavend, Zangilan, Jabrail, Gubadli, and Lachin. On election day, long lines formed in front of polling centers in the freed territory.
The My Voice election monitoring coalition is continuing its post-election monitoring. We have now started phase III of our monitoring. We are currently working on the final report on the election, and after the full completion of the election process, the final report will also be made public," the statement reads.
Stay up to date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel