Uzbekistan have overwhelmingly backed constitutional changes in a Central Asian country that could allow president Shavkat Mirziyoyev to remain in power until 2040 according to preliminary results released on Monday.
The elections commission said that some 90 percent of Voters backed the reforms with a turnout of around 85 percent in the ex-soviet country.
A rights groups say the government’s authoritarian tendencies limit space for descent.
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev became president in 2016 after the death of dictator Islam karimov.
He insists the overhaul of the Constitution will improve governance and quality of life in the landlocked Central Asian country of 35 million people whose rights have long been heavily restricted
The proposed changes will extend presidential terms from five to seven years allowing him to serve two more times and extend his time in power until 2040.
