Azerbaijan - Elections 2020
On 5 December 2019, following an appeal of the parliament, and with the consent of the Constitutional Court, the president announced early parliamentary elections to be held on 9 February 2020. Members of parliament are elected by a simple majority from 125 single-mandate constituencies for a five-year term. The number of registered voters in over half of the constituencies deviates from the average by more than what the law allows.
Parliamentary elections are primarily regulated by the Constitution and the Election Code. The Constitution provides for fundamental rights and freedoms but the regulatory framework imposes a number of restrictions on these freedoms. Many long-standing recommendations by ODIHR and Council of Europe’s Venice Commission, including those related to freedoms of assembly and expression, media environment, and candidate registration, have yet to be addressed.
Elections are administered by the Central Election Commission (CEC), 125 Constituency Election Commissions (ConECs) and around 5,500 Precinct Election Commissions (PECs). Thus far, the CEC has held regular sessions open to accredited observers and the media. Decisions were in general adopted unanimously and posted on the CEC website. Election commissions appear professional and well-resourced. The CEC is undertaking the measures to ensure that internally displaced persons (IDPs) are able to exercise their voting rights.
There are some 5.2 million registered voters of whom 340,689 are IDPs. Voter lists were available for public scrutiny between 5-15 January and voters could verify their own data online and request corrections. Election day registration is possible based on proof of residency. A difference of approximately 2 million persists between the number of registered voters as per CEC data and the number of citizens of voting age according to the State Statistics Committee.
ConECs registered 1,637 candidates of whom some 83 per cent are self-nominated. Nineteen political parties fielded a total of 272 candidates. A total of 80 members of the outgoing parliament (64 per cent) are seeking reelection. Women comprise 21 per cent of registered candidates. Four prospective nominees were denied nomination due to previous convictions and a non-expunged criminal record, despite the rulings of the European Court for Human Rights. As of 24 January, 239 of registered candidates had withdrawn.
Campaign finance legislation does not foresee direct public funding of the campaign, sets limits for donations and expenditures and obliges candidates to report on their campaign finances. Parties and candidates can use their own finances, and donations can be made by individuals and legal entities. Political parties that have more than 60 registered candidates can form a unified campaign fund. Each candidate can spend maximum AZN 500,000 (some EUR 265,000), with contribution limits set at AZN 3,000 for individuals, and AZN 50,000 for legal entities.30 Parties can use their own finances to fund their nominees by up to AZN 150,000.31 Foreign, state, charitable and anonymous donations as well as in-kind donations are prohibited.
Critics say the party’s hope for a change in the composition of parliament suggests Aliyev’s party may be trying to clear the way for Aliyev’s wife, First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva, to take over the presidency at a later date.
In its appeal to the president, parliament justified the call for early elections by the need to harmonize legislative work with the pace of economic, judicial and social reforms set by the president. The early parliamentary elections took place within a political environment dominated by the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP), which held a majority of 65 seats in the outgoing parliament. Parties that formally constituted the parliamentary opposition but largely supported YAP held 12 seats, while 38 seats held by members elected as independent candidates, who typically have also voted in line with the ruling party. All 12 parties represented in the outgoing parliament contested these elections.
These elections were a chance for new people to enter the political arena, while these elections would only bring further reallocation of mandates among ruling elites. Over the course of the past few years and most recently, several long-standing senior executives within the presidential administration and the cabinet of ministers had been replaced or moved to a different position.
Some opposition parties stated that they decided to boycott the elections due to the restrictive environment, in particular related to access to media, and restrictions on freedom of assembly during the campaign. Several prospective nominees were prevented from running in the elections despite judgements of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) to expunge the criminal records of these individuals.
While the Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, the right of access to information, and prohibits censorship, these rights are severely restricted by different laws. The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM) regularly expresses concerns about charges for grave crimes against journalists as well as about their ability to report in a free and safe manner, without fear of intimidation.
Long-term President Ilham Aliyev's ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) won a majority of seats in the snap parliamentary election, according to exit polls. Aliyev's party increased its share by four seats in the single-chamber legislature. Aliyev's party held 65 of the 125 seats in the old parliament, short of the two-thirds majority needed to change the constitution. Azerbaijan's nominally independent candidates, most of whom support the policies of the YAP, won 41 seats in the elections. Both international observers and the opposition criticized the vote, saying there had been significant violations. Aliyev's Yeni (New) Azerbaijan party secured 65 seats in the 125-member parliament.
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