Campaign Begins: 'Municipal Elections in Focus,' but 'People Don't See a Spirit of Competition'

Today, January 6, the pre-election campaign for municipal elections in Azerbaijan, scheduled for 23 days later, has officially begun.

So far, 16,174 candidates have been registered, according to Mazahir Panahov, Chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC), speaking at a meeting about the elections on January 6. Of these, 8,429 candidates represent 23 political parties.

Rovzat Gasimov, Deputy Chairman of the CEC, stated that 3,730 open and 2,180 closed venues have been designated nationwide for candidates' meetings. He also noted that the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) has opted out of free campaign opportunities for these elections.

Some analysts have already pointed out that the election atmosphere in the country is nearly non-existent, with activity levels significantly lower than in previous elections.

Hikmet Babaoğlu, a member of YAP's board, told Turan that municipal elections are indeed in focus. However, he acknowledged that participation in municipal elections is usually lower compared to parliamentary and presidential elections. "This is tied to the status of municipalities. In essence, municipalities are a local electoral event. Hence, the relatively lower level of activity in municipal elections stems from this," he explained.

According to Babaoğlu, municipalities, despite being active since 1999, have not been able to establish their own budgets or create meaningful political, economic, or social governance responsibilities. "Had municipalities effectively exercised their authority within the legal framework and made municipal governance an attractive model, the situation would be different," he noted.

The YAP representative highlighted that the government has taken various steps to improve the situation: "In 2024, amendments and changes were made to the Law on the Status of Municipalities, and the number of municipalities was reduced. I believe that after the 2025 municipal elections, municipalities will operate more effectively and meet the expectations of local populations and the public as a whole."

Meanwhile, the opposition Musavat Party has largely decided not to participate in the elections. Mustafa Hacıbeyli, the party's deputy chairman, told  Radio Azadliq that interest in municipal elections is low even within the party itself. "So far, only 35 candidates have been nominated."

Hacıbeyli attributed the lack of interest in municipal elections primarily to the fact that municipalities have functioned as extensions of executive authorities and lacked independent powers. "Elections have repeatedly been falsified, and there is no trust in the conduct of democratic and fair elections. As a result, interest is very low. People don't see a competitive spirit in these elections. Nevertheless, it is the duty of all political parties to participate in every election. To ensure our members' right to vote and stand for election, we have granted autonomy to our regional organizations."

Azerbaijan's municipal elections will take place on January 29, 2025. They were initially expected to be held at the end of last year. The previous municipal elections were held on December 23, 2019. According to the Electoral Code, municipal elections must be held within the five-year term of office.

Some political analysts and legal experts consider the delay in holding municipal elections unlawful. In response to criticism, some members of the Milli Majlis (National Assembly) explained the delay by citing the COP29 conference held in Baku from November 11 to 22 last year. However, no official explanation has been provided to the public.

The first municipal elections in Azerbaijan were held in 1999. At that time, there were 2,757 municipalities in the country. In 2009, many municipalities were merged, reducing their number to 1,716. Subsequently, the number dropped further to 1,606. Last year, this process continued, with the number of municipalities being reduced by more than half.

According to the CEC, elections will be held for 685 municipalities on January 29, with a total of 8,071 municipal council members to be elected.