Tomorrow Azerbaijan Holds First Presidential Election After Restoring Sovereignty over Karabakh

Electoral silence reigns in Azerbaijan, an oil-rich Caucasian republic on the Caspian Sea. On Wednesday, February 7, more than 6 million eligible voters will be called to 6537 polling stations to cast their ballots for one of seven presidential candidates.

It will be an early presidential election, the first since Azerbaijan restored its sovereignty over the territories of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023. Tomorrow’s elections will be held for the first time on the entire internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan. According to the Central Election Commission, more than 20 thousand people will take part in voting at polling stations in Karabakh, the territory that until last year was under the control of Armenia, not the Azerbaijani authorities.

The election campaign started after the registration of candidates for the post of the next president of Azerbaijan. Unlike Western standards, it lasted a very short time – from January 15 to the morning of Tuesday, February 6, followed by a period of pre-election silence. Voting at most polling stations across the country will take place from 8:00 to 19:00 local time.

The Election Commission has registered seven candidates for the post of President of Azerbaijan. The current head of state Ilham Aliyev, nominated by the ruling New Azerbaijan Party, occupies the first line in the opinion polls. There are two independent candidates: Zahid Oruj and Fuad Aliyev. There are also Razi Nurullayev from the National Front party, Fazil Mustafa from the Great Creation party, Elshad Musayev from the Great Azerbaijan party, and finally, Gudrat Hasanguliyev from the United People’s Front party.

According to the constitution of this former Soviet republic in Transcaucasia, the president of Azerbaijan is elected for a seven-year term. The previous elections were held in 2018, and early voting became necessary after Azerbaijan’s reunification with Nagorno-Karabakh. The Election Commission announced that more than 90,000 domestic and international observers will monitor the vote, with 13-14 observers per polling station. The first results are due to be announced on the night of Wednesday, February 7.