Exit polls: Azerbaijan leader Ilham Aliyev re-elected

The leader of oil-rich Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has won more than 83% of votes as he seeks a third term as president, exit polls suggest. The president did not even run an election campaign, so confident was he of victory, a BBC correspondent writes. Opposition activists circulated photos and videos appearing to show individuals casting multiple ballots - though these could not be verified. Aliyev inherited the presidency from his father, Heydar Aliyev.

Political opposition in the country of nine million has also been blunted by prosperity, with oil wealth more than tripling gross domestic product.

As voting closed on Wednesday, exit polls put the main opposition candidate, Jamil Hasanli, trailing on about 8% of the vote. Hasanli, a 61-year-old history professor, represents a coalition of parties. He told reporters earlier in the day that his campaign had witnessed "cases of ballot stuffing at a number of polling stations".

"Regrettably, many government officials are involved in falsification, becoming accomplices of a grave crime,'' he was quoted as saying.

Other challengers include five MPs and two low-profile opposition figures. Critics say some are in collusion with the government and only in the race to dilute the opposition vote.

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