This will be a post updated continuously through Sunday. I am going to sleep right now and will begin when I wake up. until then, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has a great primer on the events there. Here is part one, two, three, and four. And make sure to check out RFE/RL’s feature page on Tajikistan.

There is apparently high voter turnout already:

Prague, 27 February 2005 — Voter turnout at polling stations in Tajikistan early today was reported to be higher than during parliamentary elections in 2000.

In some areas, reports say voters were lining up at polling station for more than 30 minutes to cast their ballots for the lower house of parliament — known in Dushanbe as the Majlisi Namoyandagon.

Six parties are vying for the 63 seats available in the lower house. Twenty-two of those will be awarded on the basis of party lists. The remaining 41 seats will be decided through contests in single-mandate districts. In all, nearly 230 candidates are competing for places in parliament.

By mid-afternoon, Central Election Commission Chairman Mirzoali Boltuyev said that 54.7 percent of the eligible voters had cast ballots — making the election valid under Tajikistan’s electoral law.

As he cast his ballot in Dushanbe, President Rakhmonov praised the elections. At the same time, he offered cautionary words to those with high expectations about the polls.

“I think Äthe current election processÅ is much more transparent than the previous election,” Rakhmonov said. “I would not compare elections in our society to those in the United States and the West. I do not deny our shortcomings. We are just at the starting point of the creation of a democratic, secular country with the rule of law.”

Rakhmonov’s People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan — also known as the PDPT — won 65 percent of the seats in parliament in the 2000 elections. Weeks ahead of today’s vote, the party seemed poised to maintain, and probably increase the number of seats it controls.

POLLS CLOSE:

The polls have closed in Tajikistan where voters were electing members of the lower house of parliament Sunday.

The Central election commission in Dushanbe declared the poll valid, saying turnout reached more than 84 percent two hours before closing.

Eurasianet has an article about complaints from the opposition in terms of government involvement in the campaign. Otherwise, the lack of information coming out of the country is kind of astounding to me. I’m hoping more will come up soon.

To note, any and all opposition in Tajikistan is weak and fragmented, but here is an information page on the parties. Here’s their constitution.