KYRGYZ LOCAL ELECTIONS SET FOR OCTOBER, BUT RULES STILL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000897

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/CEN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM KG
SUBJECT: KYRGYZ LOCAL ELECTIONS SET FOR OCTOBER, BUT RULES STILL
UNLCEAR

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1. (SBU) Summary: Kyrgyzstan will hold local elections on October
5, with voters choosing local councils (keneshes) in Bishkek, 21
other cities, 40 districts, and 428 villages. Thirty-one local
keneshes, including that of Osh, have terms remaining and will not
hold elections. The deadline for candidate registration is
September 5, and the campaign is scheduled to begin September 15.
At this point, there is still uncertainty over the rules for
conducting the elections. Candidates apparently can be nominated
either by party list or on an individual basis, but the election
code is not clear how the votes will be tabulated. We anticipate
that there will be changes to the rules before the voting takes
place. End Summary.


2. (U) On August 4, President Bakiev announced that elections to 490
local councils (keneshes) would be held on October 5, with a
September 5 deadline for candidate registration. Voters will elect
local councils in Bishkek, 21 other cities, 40 districts, and 428
villages. Thirty-one local Keneshes, including that of Osh, have
terms remaining and will not hold elections. Each polity is
composed of a number of multi-member districts, as set by the
regional election commission. The city of Bishkek, for example, is
divided into eleven districts, each of which will elect four
deputies to the Bishkek kenesh.


3. (U) Registered political parties may nominate lists of candidates
for local keneshes, or individuals may nominate themselves. (Note:
There are persistent rumors that parliament, which reconvenes the
first week of September, will eliminate the self-nomination option,
allowing nomination only by party list. End note.) Party candidate
lists for each kenesh must be approved at party conferences by
secret ballot with election commission members observing, and the
number of party candidates may not exceed the number of open seats.
Each candidate must be at least 20 years old and a resident of "the
respective administrative-territorial units," a wording that does
not make clear whether the candidate must reside within the district
he is standing to represent, or just within the city.


4. (U) After nomination, candidates have until September 10 to
submit registration documents to the regional election commission.
Exactly what documents are required is open to some interpretation,
as the section of the election code concerning local keneshes
references several other sections of the election code that
seemingly apply only to national elections. However, the Central
Election Commission has published on its website a list of the
documents required for registration, and has announced, seemingly
contrary to the election code, that election deposits will not be
required for local elections. Following submission of the
registration documents, regional election commissions have five days
either to approve a candidate's registration, or give a reasoned
refusal. Aside from age and residency, the election code does not
list other potential grounds for disqualifying a candidate for a
local kenesh.


5. (U) Campaigning begins September 15, and continues until October
4, one day before polling begins. Candidates' spending is limited
to 1.7 million soms (approximately $50,000),and their registration
may be cancelled if they exceed campaign spending limits by more
than 0.5% of that amount. The election code contains no additional
rules for campaigning for local keneshes.


6. (U) The exact process for voting and tabulating results in
multi-member constituencies is not spelled out in the election code,
which lays out only a first-past-the-post system for single member
constituencies.


7. (SBU) Comment: Under the 2007 constitution, local councils lost
authority, including the power to elect the administrative heads of
villages and regional towns (now appointed by the rayon-level
administrative head, who is in turn appointed by the president).
Nevertheless, there is interest in these elections, and they will be
a measure of how far the president's Ak Jol party will extend its

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monopoly of power. President Bakiyev has urged his party members
not to run on an Ak Jol party list, but to run via self-nomination.
We've also heard that administrative resources are being deployed
already in favor of Ak Jol. Opposition parties Ata Meken and Ak
Shumkar have announced plans to coordinate their efforts, but have
not yet announced their candidates. The Erkindik party and Felix
Kulov's Ar Namys party have announced that they will not participate
in the council elections. We will be in contact with other parties
and candidates as the registration deadline approaches.

GFOELLER