BISHKEK, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Observers from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Commonwealth of Independent States said Sunday's presidential election in Kyrgyzstan was open and democratic.
"The SCO observer mission recognized the election of the president of Kyrgyzstan as open, free and democratic," SCO Secretary-General Rashid Alimov said at a press conference in Bishkek.
According to preliminary data, the presidential candidate Sooronbai Jeenbekov leads the election with 54.81 percent of the vote. His main opponent, Omurbek Babanov scored 33.74 percent.
According to Alimov, the election in Kyrgyzstan met the requirements of the national legislation and international obligations.
"The mission did not notice violations that would cast doubt on the legitimacy of the election results. In general, the election process provided equal conditions for all candidates," the SCO Secretary General said.
He also mentioned the active participation of eligible voters in the process.
General voter turnout in the presidential election amounted to 55.93 percent, or 1,692,423 people of total registered voters, as was announced today at a press conference in Bishkek by the chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Nurzhan Shayldabekov.
Shayldabekov said the CEC received the results from 98.32 percent of the polling stations. She noted that the results from three sites and those from abroad had not yet arrived.
The election was in full compliance with the legislation and international standards, said CIS Executive Secretary Sergei Lebedev, adding that it was open, competitive and transparent.
With representatives of 9 countries of the Commonwealth, The CIS mission has been operating in the Kyrgyz Republic since September 22.
The presidential election in Kyrgyzstan was held on Sunday with 11 candidates running for the country's top job.
According to the Constitution of Kyrgyzstan, the country's president is elected for a six-year term and will not be allowed to run for re-election. The incumbent president Almazbek Atambayev's term will end on Dec. 1.
