Nathan Reynoso 
By Nathan Reynoso, Crude Accountability Communications Assistant
On November 5th, U.S. citizens will cast their ballot, and the never-ending presidential race will finally come to a close. This election is close, teetering on a knife-edge, and it will likely take several days until a winner is called. Though some states are witnessing record-breaking early voting numbers, many Americans are not voting. In the most consequential election of this nation’s history, the constitutional right to vote is not just a privilege. It is a civic responsibility.
At Crude Accountability, we witness first-hand the disenfranchisement and suppression of the people’s voices in Eurasia. Last year, Turkmenistan held elections without any real opposition to President Serdar Berdymukhamedov’s grip on power. Despite the lack of long lines or signs of much activity at polling stations, the Central Elections Commission chief claimed that turnout was 91.12% out of almost 3.5 million eligible voters. Turkmenistan has not held a free and fair election since it became an independent state in 1991. The Turkmenistani people are not only denied the opportunity to choose a candidate to represent them, but they are suffocated by Berdymukhamedov’s regime.
Azerbaijan also held snap presidential and parliamentary elections this year. As expected, President Ilham Aliyev won a fifth consecutive term with 92.12% of the vote, according to the Central Elections Commission, and his New Azerbaijan Party maintained its dominance in the Milli Mejlis. However, OSCE election monitors found Azerbaijan’s polling environment restrictive with a lack of pluralism in candidates and opposition. Voices of dissent or criticism against the Aliyev regime are suppressed in Azerbaijan, as 319 political prisoners are currently in detention. This stranglehold on democracy restricts the ability of the Azerbaijani people to express their views and their right to be heard.
Likewise, in March of this year, Russia held its presidential election with a predestined outcome of another 6-years of Vladimir Putin. According to the country’s Central Elections Commission, Putin received the most votes ever in his 24-year reign, which is viewed as a “sham” by the international community. Similar to Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, Putin’s Russia has exercised strict censorship and dominance in the public sphere with a more aggressive crackdown on criticism against the war in Ukraine, the LGBTQ community, independent media, civil society, and opposition voices with 777 current political prisoners and the death of Alexei Navalny in an Artic penal colony earlier this year.
Georgia is also under the limelight as it held its parliamentary elections last week. While the Central Elections Commission has declared the ruling Georgian Dream party winning 54% of the vote, concern of Russian interference has Western leaders, international organizations, and the Georgian people questioning the results. Election observers of the OSCE and Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe reported incidents of irregularities and violence during the voting process. For nearly a week, the Georgian people have been protesting the election outcome to exercise the right to be heard.
On January 20th, the U.S. will have a new president in the White House. This is a fact that can’t be changed. YOU have the right to be heard. Civic engagement is vital to a healthy democracy, and your vote matters. In the 2022 Connecticut state race to represent the 81st Assembly District, Democrat Christopher Poulos defeated Republican Tony Morrison by 1 vote. In this presidential election, every ballot will be counted, and your voice will be heard.
After this presidential election, it is also critical to vote in every election, whether it is a midterm, caucus and primary, or a state proposition on the ballot. And democracy doesn’t end at the ballot box. Exercise civic engagement by contacting your representative, attending your town hall meetings, joining your civic association, signing a petition in your state, etc. We are fortunate to have a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.”
Check your registration status and nearby polling place at vote.org, and exercise your right to vote today.