ASHGABAT-Parliamentary polls were underway on Sunday in Turkmenistan, a gas-rich nation ruled by one family for nearly two decades that does not tolerate political dissent or a free press.
The vote is the first under the Central Asian nation’s new president, who took power following a hereditary succession in March 2022, and comes after the abolition of the legislature’s upper house and the creation of a supreme body. Polling stations opened at 7:00 am (0200 GMT) and will close at 7:00 pm (1400 GMT), according to an AFP correspondent in the capital Ashgabat.
Turkmenistan, a former Soviet republic, is one of the world’s most repressive, secretive states and little is known about how the regime makes day-to-day decisions. No election has been judged free or fair by Western poll observers.
President Serdar Berdymukhamedov reassured voters, saying: “These elections will take place according to democratic principles, in line with local legislation and international law.”
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