Council for a Community of Democracies

Rakhmon Wins Fraudulent Tajik Elections
March 8, 2010
By: Paul Larson

Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rakhmon extended his twenty year rule after winning the February 28 fraudulent elections, according to the AP. The People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan (PDPT), headed by President Rakhmon, won between 70.6% and 72% of the vote.

The PDPT now controls 53 out of 63 seats in the lower house of the legislature, according to the Economist. The election results are still a loss of four seats for PDPT. Two seats were taken by the Islamic Revival Party, with 7.7% to 8.2% of the vote, which expected to take 30% of the vote. As a result, the Islamic Revival Party plans to sue the Tajikistan Election Commission.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe election monitors said that the vote was not democratic due to widespread family and proxy-voting and ballot-box stuffing. According to the New York Times, this vote will lead to continued stability, but the International Crisis Group claims that Tajikistan is on the cusp of being a failed state.

Sources:

AP - Tajik governing party declared election winner

BBC News - Tajikistan elections criticised by poll watchdog

The Economist - Tajikistan's flawed election: Change you can't believe in

The New York Times - Tajikistan: Observer Says Vote Fell Short of Standards