Turkmen president wins landslide victory for third time in office

Turkmenistan’s incumbent President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has won a third term in office in a landslide victory in the country’s presidential election, preliminary results show.

Berdymukhamedov, who has ruled Turkmenistan since 2006, won 97.69 percent of the votes in the Sunday election, the Central Election Commission announced on Monday.

There are ballots to be counted in the country’s embassies abroad, said Commission chairman Gulmurat Muradov. But the outcome already looks beyond certain.

The 59-year old president was competing with eight other candidates in the race.

The gas-rich Central Asian county amended its constitution last year to allow Berdymukhamedov to stay in power indefinitely. The amendment also removed the 70-year age limit for presidential candidates and extended the presidential term to seven years from five.

In the 2012 presidential election, Berdymukhamedov had gained 97 percent of the votes, securing his place in office for a second term.

Berdymukhamedov has been at the helm of the former Soviet republic since the autocratic president-for-life Saparmurat Niyazov died in 2006.

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