Polling stations closed down at 8:00 p.m. local time (6:00 p.m. Moscow time) in Tajikistan on Sunday, thus ending a parliamentary election, Itar-Tass reported.
The canvassing campaign had lasted for about 45 days. There were no incidents or shocking statements by parties and numerous observers this time, in contrast with the election 2005.
The Central Elections Commission lauded the high turnout, which reached 87.2% two hours before the ballot's end. "Our citizens still have time to take part in the main political event, which will determine the [country's] development for the next five years," head of the Central Elections Commission office Mukhibullo Dadadzhanov told Itar-Tass.
In his words, the vote was quiet and sporadic occurrences had no influence on the choice of voters.
All the eight political parties took part in the election, but independent observers said that only three of them had a chance for victory, i.e. the People's Democratic Party led by President Emomali Rakhmon, the Communist Party and the Islamic Revival Party that had been steadily gaining political weight through the emphasis on Islamic values in the Islamic country.
If the election is fair and transparent, the Social Democratic Party defined as an organization of lawyers and technocrats may also be victorious, the experts said.
More than 530 representatives of the OSCE/ODIHR, the CIS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Russian parliament were monitoring the ballot. Their statement is due on Monday.
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