Uzbekistan's President, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, is holding early presidential elections today, Sunday, in an effort to extend his rule for an additional seven years. This comes after he amended the constitution a few months ago to change the presidential term limits, which would have required him to step down in 2026.
Mirziyoyev eliminated the presidential term limit in the constitution, which was previously restricted to two terms, through a referendum in April. This adjustment reset his previous terms and extended future presidential terms to seven years instead of five.
At 65 years old, Mirziyoyev has taken the country out of near-total isolation since he came to power in 2016 following the death of Islam Karimov, who had ruled the country since the Soviet era and kept it isolated from most of the world.
Mirziyoyev is competing against three candidates from the Environmental Party, the People's Democratic Party, and the Social Democratic Party (Adolat). However, there are no strong opposition parties or prominent politicians, and there have never been elections deemed competitive by international observers.
Like other countries in Central Asia, Uzbekistan is trying to mitigate the collateral damage from Western sanctions on Russia, its traditional trading partner, due to the war in Ukraine. The decline of the Russian ruble means Tashkent expects a decrease in the flow of foreign currency from the millions of its citizens working in Russia. Uzbekistan, which was previously an energy exporter, consumes more oil and gas than it produces and currently imports fuel from Russia, benefiting from Moscow's redirection of its exports away from the West. Politically, Tashkent maintains a stance of neutrality and calls for peace in Ukraine while committing to adhere to Western sanctions, all while keeping natural ties with Moscow.
