BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 7. The 2024
Azerbaijani presidential election stands out from previous one due
to its high level of activity, said Mikhail Gusman, the First
Deputy Director General of TASS (Russian News Agency), Trend reports, referring
to the “Election 2024” Independent Media Center.

He further emphasized the significance and indicative nature of
the ongoing election process.

“The participation level in this election surpasses that of
previous one. It’s evident. People are turning out in large numbers
without any specific campaign urging them to do so. I believe this
is influenced by the fact that Azerbaijan today stands as a country
free from occupied territories due to the victorious outcome of the
Second Karabakh War. This has significantly boosted people’s
enthusiasm for the election,” he said.

Candidates for the presidency in the upcoming election include
incumbent President Ilham Aliyev (New Azerbaijan Party),
independent contenders Zahid Oruj and Fuad Aliyev, Razi Nurullayev
(National Front Party), Fazil Mustafa (Great Order Party), Elshad
Musayev (Great Azerbaijan Party), and Gudrat Gasanguliyev (Whole
Azerbaijan Popular Front Party).

From 08:00 (GMT+4), polling stations will be open for voters,
and close at 19:00. The Central Election Commission Secretariat’s
Information Center will share preliminary updates on the voting
process and results at 17:00 and 19:00 Baku time.

The crucial cutoff for candidate registration came on January 9,
with seven contenders now in the race for the presidential
seat.

The voter roll boasts 6,478,623 people who will cast their votes
across 6,537 polling stations throughout the country.

A total of 90,372 observers are registered to monitor the
election, with 790 of them representing 72 international
organizations from 89 countries.

For the first time in the history of independent Azerbaijan, the
upcoming election will span across the entire country, including
the lands liberated from Armenian occupation in 2020. In the
liberated territories, 26 polling stations have been
established.

For Azerbaijani citizens residing abroad, 49 polling stations
have been established in the embassies and consulates of 37
countries. This allows over 23,000 expatriates to participate in
the voting process from various corners of the globe.

A robust media presence of 190 international entities is
dedicated to observing the election, with 216 of their
representatives officially registered as international
observers.

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