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BISHKEK — The parties that support Kyrgyzstan's president swept the parliamentary elections, according to final results released Thursday, excluding the opposition from power and raising the risk of political clashes.
Instability here could threaten a U.S. air base, vital in the allied struggle against insurgents in Afghanistan, along with plans for roads, railroads and pipelines through this corner of energy-rich ex-Soviet Central Asia.
The Central Election Commission said President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's political party Ak Jol won 71 out of 90 seats in Sunday's vote, the Central Election Commission said. Two smaller parties that have sided with Bakiyev in the past — the social democrats and communists — won the rest.
The opposition Ata Meken party finished second with about 8.3 percent of the vote, but failed to win any seats under restrictive new election rules recently pushed through by Bakiyev. Ata Meken's leaders accused the government of rigging the results and threatened to challenge them in court.
But Bakiyev said "the election campaign has been among the cleanest in recent time," adding that it was "a big step forward toward democratic reforms."
Speaking at a meeting with members of Ak Jol, Bakiyev noted Ata Meken's protests.
"Not all contenders in the election are happy, not all of them have managed to score a victory," he said. "But all of them have gained a colossal campaign experience. We have seen that we have a potential for the creation of several strong parties in the future."
Under Kyrgyzstan's recently revised election rules, voters could cast ballots only for parties rather than independent candidates.
In order to qualify for seats, a party had to receive 5 percent of the vote nationwide and draw at least 0.5 percent of their nationwide vote from each of several regions.
While Ata Meken easily cleared the nationwide hurdle, it failed to receive the minimum number of votes required in the southern city of Osh, Bakiyev's political stronghold, the election commission said.
Supporters of the election law changes said they would require parties to wage nationwide, and not just regional, campaigns. Kyrgyz politics are marked by deep regional divisions. Bakiyev is a southerner while most of his foes come from the north.
Bakiyev's critics claim the new election rules were written to produce the result announced Thursday: the elimination of the opposition from parliament.
Omurbek Tekebayev, the former speaker of parliament and leader of Ata Meken, accused the government of rigging the vote and said his party would appeal the results in court. "This is an unprecedented, blatant falsification," he told The Associated Press.
Two days after the vote, Kyrgyzstan's Supreme Court ordered changes in some of the election rules, in what some analysts thought was an effort to ensure the opposition won at least some seats. If that was the aim, it did not work.
Election officials said Ata Meken failed to clear the 0.5 percent barrier in the southern city of Osh by a few hundred votes. Party leaders insist they cleared the barrier.
Two small parties — the social democrats and the communists — won 11 and 8 seats, respectively. In the past, both have sided with Bakiyev on key issues.
Opposition leaders have threatened to stage mass protests. Street demonstrations after the 2005 parliamentary vote drove then-President Askar Akayev from power.
So far, though, the vote has provoked only small-scale demonstrations.
Several members of the Ata Meken party went on a hunger strike Thursday to protest the official count. Meanwhile, 15 young supporters demonstrated in front of the election commission carrying signs declaring "I don't believe!" Police arrived within minutes to break up the unauthorized rally.
Kyrgyzstan, a nation of 5 million people, has seen almost continuous political turmoil since the 2005 revolt. Bakiyev has clashed with defiant lawmakers over the extent of his powers and over government appointments. After a series of large-scale street protests, police in March cracked down, using tear gas and stun grenades to break up a demonstration.
Security has been on the decline in recent years. In the heavily populated south, radical Islamic groups have gained influence since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.
Kyrgyzstan had long been considered the most liberal among Central Asia's five predominantly Muslim nations, but Bakiyev has faced criticism for attempts to tighten control.
