Voters in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan were on the verge of being elected as president-nationalist politician Sadyr Japarov, who jumped out of jail last year amid unrest and earlier called for nationalization of some of the country’s most valuable assets , and this has contributed to concern among foreign investors in the turbulent, resource-rich country.
Sunday’s election, in which voters also approved changes to the constitution, gave the president more power, is the first vote since riots last year that forced former president Sooronbai Jeenbekov to resign, with the restriction on a long period of political uncertainty in the Russian country. .
Mr. Japarov was elected prime minister in October and will also serve as acting president following the resignation of Mr. Jeenbekov.
The protests, fueled by allegations of vote-buying during the October parliamentary elections last year, shocked Moscow and contributed to the Kremlin’s problems in its former Soviet periphery, which included a persistent protest movement in Belarus and ‘ a conflict in the South Caucasus that increased the influence of Turkey. there.
Mr. Japarov led by more than 79% of the electorate after the polls closed late Sunday, with more than 90% of the votes counted. There were 17 candidates for the post. There were no reports of violence during voting.