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Early presidential election campaign kicks off in Uzbekistan

On April 30, a referendum on amendments to the country’s constitution was held in Uzbekistan, which will extend the presidential term in office from five to seven years

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

TASHKENT, May 10./ TASS/. Uzbekistan’s Central Election Commission (CEC) gave the go-ahead at a meeting on Wednesday to the start of an early presidential election campaign in the Central Asian country.

"In accordance with the decree of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on the designation of early presidential elections in Uzbekistan, as well as based on the Electoral Code and the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Central Election Commission hereby announces the start of the election campaign for an early presidential election, which will be held on July 9 in accordance with the presidential decree," CEC Chairman Zainiddin Nizamkhojaev told the meeting, which was broadcast on the CEC’s YouTube channel.

On May 8, Mirziyoyev signed a decree on holding an early presidential election in the country. Earlier, the president signed a decree authorizing an early election. The document was passed by the lower house of parliament and then approved by the Senate (upper house), taking effect on May 8.

The Electoral Code previously allowed early elections only if the incumbent president was unable to perform his duties for three months. During this period, the powers of the head of state were transferred to the Senate speaker.

On April 30, a referendum on amendments to the country’s constitution was held in Uzbekistan, which will extend the presidential term in office from five to seven years. As well, it will enable Mirziyoyev to run again for the presidency after completing two consecutive terms. According to the CEC’s data, the voter turnout for the referendum was 84.5%, representing over 16.6 million voters. More than 15 million people (90.21%) voted in favor of amending the constitution.

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