line with the requirements of the local legislation and international norms of elections". Ultimately OSCE chose not to monitor the elections, since the country's laws did not allow genuine competition. Human Rights Watch was also critical of the vote, for the same reason. Some residents reported being pressured to vote, or for whom to vote. There were also other issues, such as the use of pencils to mark votes, allowing single members of a family to vote for everyone else in the family, and that some people voted without needing to provide any identification documents. Results There were 13 seats up for election in Ashgabat, 19 seats in Ahal Province, 11 in Balkan Province, 26 in Daşoguz Province, 26 in Lebap Province, and 28 in Mary Province. Two or more candidates competed in each constituency, and candidates needed to win 50% of the vote in order to secure the seat. Runoffs were held on 28 December 2008, and a revote was held in one seat on 8 February 2009. A list of 123 winners were announced on 22 December 2008. However, the party affiliation of the candidates was not listed. References Turkmenistan Turkmenistan Parliamentary election Parliamentary election Elections in Turkmenistan Election and referendum articles with incomplete results