| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Oliy Majlis / Supreme Assembly |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name (generic / translated) |
Qonunchilik palatasi / Legislative Chamber |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Senat / Senate
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) (from/to) | 27 December 2009
10 January 2010 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all elective seats in the Legislative Chamber on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
The December 2009 elections were the first to be held under the new electoral law adopted a year earlier. The statutory number of members of the Legislative Chamber rose from 120 to 150, 135 of whom are directly elected. Their candidatures need to be endorsed by a political party. Previously, independent candidates or candidates from Citizens' initiative groups were also allowed to run. President Islam Karimov, who has been in power since 1990, argued that such a system would enhance the role of political parties. The remaining 15 seats are reserved for the Ecological Movement of Uzbekistan (EMU). The EMU, widely believed to be a pro-government party, was established in August 2008. It holds separate indirect elections to elect representatives to the Legislative Chamber.
In the previous elections held in December 2004, the Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP) - officially known as the "Movement of Entrepreneurs and Business People-the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan" - took 41 of the 120 seats at stake. The People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (PDPU, formerly the Communist Party), followed with 28. The Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, "Milliy tiklanish" (national revival), the Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, "Adolat" (justice) and the National Democratic Party, "Fidorkorlar", took 11, 10 and nine seats respectively. The Citizens' group nominees took the remainder. In June 2008, the PDPU absorbed the Fidorkorlar.
All parties in the outgoing legislature had nominated President Karimov for the presidential elections held in 2007. There are no officially recognized opposition parties in the country although a few opposition parties operate in exile.
A total of 517 candidates, including 165 women, were vying for seats in the 2009 elections. Four parties represented in the outgoing legislature backed over 120 candidates each. The UzLiDeP backed 135 candidates while the PDPU supported 134. The Milliy tiklanish party and the Adolat party endorsed 125 and 123 candidates respectively.
The UzLiDep pledged to continue reforms to strengthen the rule of law and the market economy. The PDPU pledged to increase its role in the reforms in the country, form a "socially oriented market economy" and modernize the country. It remains the country's largest party in terms of membership, which has reportedly halved in the last ten years.
The outgoing Speaker, Ms. Dilorom Toshmuhammadova, was backed by the Adolat party for a constituency in the capital, Tashkent. The party pledged to adopt an anti-corruption law and establish a body tasked with protecting children's rights. It also promised to introduce an e-government system in order to improve communication between citizens and the government. The Milliy tiklanish party vowed to make national revival a reality, preserve national traditions and values and improve the spiritual and moral education of citizens. It also promised to enhance public scrutiny of government decision-making.
According to the election commission, 87.76 per cent of the 17.2 million registered voters turned out at the polls on 27 December. The EMU held indirect elections on the same day.
Over 270 observers from 36 countries and four international observer missions monitored the polls. The latter included the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Executive Committee. The OSCE/ODIHR did not send a full-fledged observer mission, arguing that the current electoral system in Uzbekistan did not offer the electorate a genuine choice. The CIS mission said that the elections had been "free and open" and demonstrated the country's "political maturity".
A total of 96 candidates, including 19 women, obtained the required 50 per cent of the votes to be elected in the first round.
Run-off elections for the remaining 39 seats were held on 10 January 2010. The final results gave 53 seats to the UzLiDeP. The PDPU and the Milliy tiklanish party won 32 and 31 seats respectively while the Adolat party took 19 seats. In all, 33 women were elected, of whom two by the EMU.
The newly elected Legislative Chamber held its first session on 22 January 2010 and re-elected Ms. Dilorom Toshmuhammadova of the Adolat party as its Speaker.
The Senate was also renewed in January 2010. On 26 January, it re-appointed Mr. Sobirov Ilgizar Matyakubovich as its President. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 27 December 2009 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
17'215'700
15'108'000 (87.76%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Round no 2 | 10 January 2010 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
4'969'547
3'960'876 (79.7%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Grand total |
|
|
|
| Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP) |
33
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Milliy tiklanish" |
25
|
|
|
|
|
| People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan |
22
|
|
|
|
|
| Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Adolat" |
16
|
|
|
|
|
|
Round no 2
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Grand total |
|
|
|
| Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP) |
20
|
53 |
|
|
|
| People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan |
10
|
32 |
|
|
|
| Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Milliy tiklanish" |
6
|
31 |
|
|
|
| Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Adolat" |
3
|
19 |
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
117
33
22.00%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
- Legislative Chamber (27.01.2010)
- http://elections.uz
- http://www.press-service.uz/en/content/constitution/konstituciya_uzbekistana/# |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
