Khachmaz resident complains about “forced” nomination to the municipality

Baku / 12.12.19 / Turan: Sayad Ismayilov , a resident of the village of Uzunoba, Khachmaz region, was nominated as a candidate member of the municipal council in the elections on December 23 without knowing it.

He told Radio Azadlig that the Yeni Azerbaijan party had nominated him. Prior to that, a working teacher in a rural school, Ismayilov was asked several times to run for office, but he refused.  

“I refused, but I was nominated anyway,” Ismayilov said. He noted that he complained about similar arbitrariness to the local administration and municipality, but in vain. 

The district election commission of the 56th Khachmaz rural district declined to comment. However, the CEC’s media and public relations department said that Ismayilov himself had put forward his candidacy, but later wrote a statement to withdraw the candidacy.

The executive director of the Center for Election Monitoring and Democracy Education, Mammad Mammadzadeh, believes that in conditions of low interest of the population in municipal elections, the number of candidates is artificially overestimated by local authorities in order to show an “active struggle”. Independent candidates are hindered from registering, and in some cases, from being forced to withdraw from the election. –21C-