BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 1. The extraordinary election to the Azerbaijani Parliament started in Shaki-Zagatala region, as well as everywhere in the country, Trend reports.
According to information, 439 polling stations of eight electoral districts operating in Balaken, Zagatala, Gakh, Shaki, Oguz, and Gabala districts opened their doors for voters from 8.00 am.
The data of the district election commissions indicate that the total number of voters whose names are included in the voter lists of these constituencies is 423,397 people. Of them, 3,946 people are voting in the election for the first time. Moreover, the number of voters over 80 years of age is 6,356 people. A total of 67 candidates are competing for eight mandates in the Azerbaijani Parliament in these constituencies. Of them, 18 represent different political parties. 49 people were nominated on their own initiative. 20 candidates are women.
The necessary conditions have been created at all polling stations for transparent and democratic voting, the stations are provided with the necessary equipment and technical means, including reliable communication systems and power generators. The election process in these districts is monitored by 6,815 local observers, as well as representatives of international organizations.
Furthermore, the extraordinary election to the Azerbaijani Parliament continues at the polling stations of Gakh-Shaki constituency No. 113 under the conditions of voters' activity. Citizens who have the right to vote have been coming to the polling stations since morning, making their choice, and fulfilling their civic duty.
The voting process at the polling station located in the Cultural Center of Gakh district is monitored by 9 local observers representing various political parties and public associations.
The necessary conditions for free, democratic, and transparent voting have been created at the polling station. After the voter presents his/her identity document, the ultraviolet lamp is used to check whether the thumb of the left hand is marked with invisible ink. The invisible ink is then applied to the voter's thumb and the ballot paper is given to the voter.
As in previous elections, 84-year-old Mais Shabanov, a resident of Gakh town and a district elder was the first to arrive at the polling station. He noted that he was excited to participate in this election, which is important for our country.
“Voting is going on at a good level. Everyone freely makes their choice, and votes for the candidate they want. I made my choice too, I voted for the candidate I wanted,” he noted.
The other voters also expressed satisfaction with the conditions created at the polling station, emphasizing that the voting is transparent and democratic.
On June 28, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree dissolving the sixth convocation of the Azerbaijani Parliament and scheduling the extraordinary election for September 1.
Azerbaijan has 6,421,960 registered voters, including 374 who turned 18 on the election day. There are 6,478 polling stations, comprising 6,343 permanent and 135 temporary locations.
In the territories liberated from occupation, 54 permanent polling stations are set up. There are 10 electoral districts for internally displaced persons (IDPs), with 574 IDP polling stations serving 397,862 voters. More than 42,000 voters will cast their ballots in the liberated areas.
A total of 51,141 voters will participate for the first time in the extraordinary parliamentary election. The oldest female voter is 134 years old, and the oldest voter is 109 years old.
Exit polls will be conducted at approximately 2,500 polling stations. Three international organizations are registered to carry out these polls: the Citizens' Labor Rights Protection League, together with Oracle Advisory Group (US), and the "Tereggi" Public Association for Social Research, in collaboration with the Italian SWG S.p.A. research company.
A total of 112,749 local observers have been registered, including over 65,000 representatives of political parties. There are 598 international observers from 51 organizations and 69 countries, including 227 from OSCE/ODIHR and 61 from OSCE PA.
Among the 990 registered candidates, 305 represent 25 political parties, while 371 are party members but were not nominated by their parties. In total, 676 candidates are affiliated with political parties.
Webcams have been installed at 1,000 polling stations nationwide to allow direct and continuous observation of the voting process without requiring registration.
Portable ballot boxes will be used across all polling stations for the parliamentary election on September 1.
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