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Tajiks wait on election verdict Tajik president wins third term
(about 12 hours later)
Polls have closed in the Central Asian republic of Tajikistan, where 3.2 million eligible voters have been choosing their next president. Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov has won a third term in office, in an election which international observers say was neither free nor fair.
Emomali Rakhmonov is expected to win a third term but has admitted the poll is unlikely to be entirely free and fair. The election commission said Mr Rakhmonov won more than 76% of the vote, with his closest rival winning just 7%.
Three main opposition parties are either boycotting the vote or have refused to field candidates. The country's three main opposition parties had either boycotted the vote or refused to field candidates.
Electoral officials reported a turnout of about 83% four hours before voting ended. Results are due on Tuesday. But Mr Rahhmonov has rebuffed the criticism over the poll.
The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said last week that it had seen no sign of competitive campaigning. He told reporters on Monday that his country had a completely different culture to that of the West, and said this difference had to be taken into account.
Rare rally "But we are developing," he said. "We have started this process, and naturally it is not without problems."
Tajikistan has never held an election that has been judged free and fair by international observers. Mr Rakhmonov's win was largely considered a foregone conclusion.
Mr Rakhmonov won the last presidential poll in 1999 with 96% of the vote - raising concerns among Western observers. No opponents directly criticised the 54-year-old leader during campaigning, fuelling suspicions that at least some of them were chosen by the authorities.
Mr Rakhmonov himself said on Monday that expectations of a Western-style election free from any irregularities or abuses were wide of the mark. Western observers told Reuters news agency that they had noted a number of irregularities in Monday's poll, including ballot stuffing and identical signatures on some ballot papers.
It would be absolutely not correct if we said now that this election will be held 100% in line with the OSCE standards Emomali RakhmonovTajik president Different sources have given Mr Rakhmonov between 76% and 79% of the vote - which is down from the previous election in 1999, when he won 96% of the vote.
"Tajikistan is a country populated 99% by Muslims, and it's a completely different culture and that has to be taken into account," he said. "The results were probably falsified to show progress for democracy," a Western diplomat told Reuters.
"But we are developing. We have started this process, and naturally it is not without problems. It would be absolutely not correct if we said now that this election will be held 100% in line with the OSCE standards." The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe is due to give its assessment of the election later on Tuesday.
Widespread supportWidespread support
Mr Rakhmonov is a former communist official who has been Tajikistan's head of state since independence in 1992. Mr Rakhmonov is a former communist official who has been Tajikistan's head of state for the last 14 years.
He is known for his hardline policies, and has already courted controversy by changing the constitution, theoretically allowing him to stay in power until 2020.He is known for his hardline policies, and has already courted controversy by changing the constitution, theoretically allowing him to stay in power until 2020.
He faces three little-known candidates from parties that are sympathetic to his government, and was hotly tipped for another seven years in power. But despite this, he undeniably retains a lot of public support.
Rakhmonov has done so much to make things better Sakhobat, fruit seller Q&A: Tajik elections No opponents have directly criticised the 54-year-old leader during campaigning, fuelling suspicions that at least some of them were chosen by the authorities.
Nevertheless, public support for Mr Rakhmonov is undeniable.
Tajikistan is still very poor, but many people remain thankful they no longer have to face the civil war of the 1990s, which killed more than 50,000 and caused more than 10% of the population to flee the country.Tajikistan is still very poor, but many people remain thankful they no longer have to face the civil war of the 1990s, which killed more than 50,000 and caused more than 10% of the population to flee the country.
"Rakhmonov has done so much to make things better," said 43-year-old fruit seller Sakhobat. "Rakhmonov has done so much to make things better," said 43-year-old fruit seller Sakhobat before the poll.
"We had a war here and it ruined everything," she told the Associated Press. "We're still poor, but if you want to work, you can find something to do.""We had a war here and it ruined everything," she told the Associated Press. "We're still poor, but if you want to work, you can find something to do."