People vote at home in Uzbekistan s presidential election in Tashkent on July 9, 2023. AFP
During a press conference held earlier on Sunday, Nizamukhodayev Zainuddin Makhnovych, head of the Central Election Commission of Uzbekistan, announced that voting in the early presidential elections had begun at more than 9,000 polling stations.
He added that early voting for voters outside the country took place from June 28 to July 5 in more than 56 countries.
The current president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, is running for the Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party, competing against Ulugbek Inoyatov from the People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, Robakhon Makhmudova from the Justice Social Democratic Party, and Abdushukur Khamzaev from the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan.
Around 20 million Uzbeks are eligible to vote out of a total population of 36 million in Central Asia's most populous country, a landlocked nation bordering Afghanistan.
Over 1,400 journalists from around the world, and dozens of television networks are covering the elections.
Makhnovych noted that international and local observers had started their work in all electoral districts. The number of registered local observers is estimated at 53,677, 45% of them being women.
The country has also welcomed 797 international observers from various countries and organizations.
President Mirziyoyev, aged 65, is seeking to extend his rule another seven years through this early election. In April, he changed the constitution via referendum, lifting term limits that would have required him to step down by 2026.
Mirziyoyev assumed power in 2016 after the death of Islam Karimov, who had ruled since the Soviet era.
Short link: