Turkmenistan, Assessment of the Electoral Legislation

This assessment of the electoral legislation of Turkmenistan is provided by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR), upon the request of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat. This assessment is based on unofficial English translation of the Constitution, amended on 26 September 2008, and other laws, primarily the Mejlis Election Law (MEL), adopted on 10 October 2008, the Presidential Election Law (PEL), adopted on 21 May 2011, and the Halk Maslakhaty and Gengesh Election Law (HM/GEL), adopted on 31 March 2012. In addition, the legal framework for elections includes the Law on Guarantees of Electoral Rights of the People of Turkmenistan of 22 April 1999 and the Law on the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda of 21 May 2011. Relevant provisions from the Civil Procedure Code, Law on Public Association, and Law on Media have been taken into consideration as well for the purposes of this assessment.