Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov will face seven candidates in a presidential election next month, which is being seen as a formality for the all-powerful leader of the Central Asian country.
The candidate list published on January 18 by the Central Election Commission includes nominees drawn from a variety of government ministries and state-owned companies, all of which have voiced their full support for the policies of the president.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has declined to send an observer mission to the February 12 election, citing the lack of political competition and limited freedoms.
Berdymukhamedov became president in 2007, after the death of Turkmenistan’s authoritarian leader Saparmurat Niyazov.
compiled from agency reports
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