Voters in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan were on track to elect nationalist politician Sadyr Japarov, who was released from prison on the back of unrest last year and called in the past for the nationalization of some of the country’s most valuable assets , adding concern among foreign investors in the turbulent, resource-rich country.
Sunday’s election, in which voters approved amendments to the constitution, giving the president more power, is the first vote since last year’s riots that forced former President Sooronbai Jeenbekov to resign, limiting a long period of political uncertainty. in the country aligned with Russia.
Mr Japarov was elected prime minister in October and served as interim president following Mr Jeenbekov’s resignation.
These protests, triggered by accusations of buying votes in last October’s parliamentary elections, alarmed Moscow and added to the Kremlin’s problems on its former Soviet periphery, which include a persistent protest movement in Belarus and a conflict in the South Caucasus. saw the growing influence of Turkey There.
Mr. Japarov led with more than 79% of the votes cast after the polls closed late on Sunday, with more than 90% of the votes counted, according to Russian news agencies, according to the country’s central electoral committee. There were 17 candidates for the position. No violence was reported during the vote.