Presidential election in Kyrgyzstan 2021

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Election winner Sadyr Japarow

The presidential election in Kyrgyzstan 2021 was held on January 10, 2021 . The successor to Sooronbai Dscheenbekow was elected , who had resigned from the office of president in the wake of the protests following the parliamentary elections in Kyrgyzstan in 2020 . In the first ballot, Sadyr Japarow was able to prevail with around 79% of the votes cast and thus became the new President of the Kyrgyz Republic .

At the same time as the presidential election, the Kyrgyz people voted in a referendum to amend the Kyrgyz constitution .

Electoral system

The presidential election was held as a majority vote in accordance with the constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic . A candidate had to gain an absolute majority of the votes cast in order to win a six-year term as President of Kyrgyzstan. If none of the candidates had succeeded in this in the first ballot, a runoff would have been held between the two most successful candidates from the first ballot. The right to vote in the election applied to all Kyrgyz citizens who were at least 18 years old at the time of the election, with the exception of prisoners and people with mental disorders. Candidates for the office of president had to register with the Central Electoral Commission and deposit a fee there. In addition, candidates had to prove a residence in Kyrgyzstan and knowledge of the Kyrgyz language .

background

In the previous presidential election in 2017 , Sooronbai Dscheenbekow was elected president of the Kyrgyz Social Democratic Party , the next election was scheduled for the year 2023. On October 15, 2020, however, Dscheenbekow resigned prematurely from the office of President after this step was increasingly demanded in the protests against the irregular parliamentary election on October 4, 2020. Thereupon Sadyr Japarov , who was only released from prison in the wake of the unrest following the parliamentary elections, where he was serving a multi-year prison sentence for hostage-taking, was appointed acting president. Japarov had previously risen to prime minister and thus now united the two most powerful offices in the country. On November 14, 2020, Japarov resigned as acting president in order to run for the presidential election under the constitution.

Candidates

Adachan Madumarov , party leader of Butun Kyrgyzstan

In November 2020, more than 60 people expressed interest in running for the highest political office in Kyrgyzstan, but by the end of December the field had been reduced to 17 applicants, who will be available for election on January 10, 2021. The clear favorite was Sadyr Japarow, who already had a good chance of winning the first ballot in the polls. Other prominent candidates were the leader of the opposition party Butun Kyrgyzstan, Adachan Madumarow , and the former parliamentary speaker Kanatbek Isayev . Former constitutional judge Klara Sooronkulova was the only woman to run for the presidential election.

Result

After counting almost all of the votes, the Central Election Commission announced a preliminary result of the presidential election on the evening of election day. Accordingly, Japarov won with around 79% of the votes cast in the first ballot. With a share of 6.7% of the vote, the opposition candidate Adachan Madumarow received the second most votes. The voter turnout was low at just under 38%; in the last presidential election in 2017 it was more than 56%.

On the day after the election, the Central Election Commission announced the following distribution of votes as the preliminary result of the presidential election:

candidate Political party Votes (absolute) Votes (relative)
Sadyr Japarov Mekenchil 1,116,275 79.18%
Adachan Madumarov Butun Kyrgyzstan 94,351 6.69%
Babyrjan Tolbayev - 33,679 2.39%
Arstanbek Myktybek Bir Bol 23,633 1.68%
Abdil Segisbaew - 20,840 1.48%
Imamidine Tashov - 16,699 1.18%
Klara Sooronkulova Reforma 14,127 1.00%
Aimen Kasenow - 12,908 0.92%
Ulukbek Kochkorov Birimdik 9,451 0.67%
Kanatbek Issayev Kyrgyzstan Party 8,183 0.58%
Kursan Asanov - 7,078 0.50%
Eldar Abakirov - 7,052 0.50%
Baktybek Kalmamatov - 6,959 0.49%
Rawshan Dscheenbekow - 2,687 0.19%
Kanybek Imanaliev - 2,510 0.18%
Jenishbek Baiuttiev - 1,344 0.1%
Arstanbek Abdyldaev - 1,160 0.08%
against all candidates - 19,238 1.36%
Total valid votes - 1,398,076 100%
invalid votes - 11,722 0.83%
Total votes cast - 1,409,798 100%
Total eligible voters - 3,563,574 -
voter turnout - - 39.56%

Reactions

As a consequence of the riots after the parliamentary elections in October 2020, the presence of the security forces was significantly increased, particularly in the capital Bishkek , so that there were no major riots on election day for the time being. The election result was not without controversy, however, the accusation of buying votes was again raised, among others by the campaign of Klara Sooronkulova. More than 60 irregularities were reported to the Central Election Commission on election day, many of them relating to the purchase of votes and the misuse of government resources. Several unsuccessful candidates therefore did not recognize the election result. In particular, the runner-up candidate, Adachan Madumarov, expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the election. He claimed the quick vote count and strong encouragement for Japarov were the result of pre-planned programs , so he would fight to the end until illicit practices in Kyrgyzstan are eliminated .

Election winner Japarov, on the other hand, recognized the election result and said at a press conference on election day that it was impossible to falsify the election result. He interpreted the lower turnout compared to previous presidential elections as a sign of the legitimacy of the election, since the previous elections and the high turnout were the result of election fraud.

Despite doubts about the outcome of the election on the part of the opposition, this was recognized by other governments on election day. As one of the first heads of state, Aschraf Ghani , the President of Afghanistan , congratulated Japarov on his election victory. The Turkish government also recognized the election result and praised the holding of the election as calm and peaceful . On the day after the election, Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Japarov on his election victory, according to the Kremlin, and offered close cooperation between the two states.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Early Presidential Election, January 10, 2021. In: osce.org. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe , accessed January 5, 2021 .
  2. ↑ IFES Election Guide | Elections: Kyrgyzstan President 2021. Accessed January 5, 2021 .
  3. ↑ Acting Kyrgyz President Japarov Announces Move To Become Eligible For New Vote. In: rferl.org. October 26, 2020, accessed January 5, 2021 .
  4. ↑ Peter Leonard, Ayzirek Imanaliyeva: Seizure of Kyrgyzstan nears completion as president steps down. In: eurasianet.org. October 15, 2020, accessed January 5, 2021 .
  5. ^ Kyrgyz Opposition Leader Madumarov Announces Plan To Seek Presidency. In: rferl.org. October 30, 2020, accessed January 5, 2021 .
  6. ↑ Kyrgyz Parliament Speaker Steps Down To Join Growing Field Of Presidential Hopefuls. In: rferl.org. November 4, 2020, accessed January 5, 2021 .
  7. ↑ Catherine Putz: 17 Candidates Remain in the Kyrgyz Presidential Race. In: The Diplomat. January 5, 2021, accessed January 5, 2021 (American English).
  8. ^ Shaparov wins presidential election in Kyrgyzstan. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  9. ↑ aparov wins Kyrgyzstan election: Preliminary results. In: aa.com. January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  10. ↑ Информационная избирательная система. In: Central Electoral Commission. January 11, 2021, accessed January 11, 2021 .
  11. ↑ Japarov Appears To Win Kyrgyz Presidential Election, Set To Get Sweeping Powers. In: rferl.org. January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  12. ↑ Presidential candidate Adakhan Madumarov does not recognize election results. In: Akipress . January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  13. ↑ Japarov: 'Falsification of voting results impossible, I checked servers'. In: Akipress . January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  14. ↑ Sadyr Japarov comments on low voter turnout in snap presidential elections. In: Akipress . January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  15. ↑ Putin congratulates Sadyr Japarov on his victory. In: Akipress . January 11, 2021, accessed January 11, 2021 .
  16. ↑ President of Afghanistan congratulates Sadyr Japarov with presidential election victory. In: Akipress . January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .
  17. ↑ Handan Kacanzi: Turkey welcomes peaceful elections in Kyrgyzstan. In: aa.com. January 10, 2021, accessed January 10, 2021 .