Azerbaijan's ruling Yeni Azerbaijan (New Azerbaijan) party says it has won at least 72 seats in parliament in the February 9 elections.
The party's executive secretary, Ali Ahmedov, wrote in a post on Facebook on February 12 that the seat count remains preliminary as the Central Election Commission continues to count the votes.
The commission said a day earlier that the ruling party won 70 out of 125 seats in the single-chamber legislature, while nearly all of the remaining mandates went to small parties and independents loyal to President Ilham Aliyev.
International monitors have identified widespread procedural violations in the vote count, raising doubts about the fairness of the elections. Aliyev called the vote nine months early to consolidate his authority.
The opposition have alleged widespread violations, including ballot box stuffing, in the elections.
On February 11, police in Baku detained more than 20 opposition and independent candidates who protested the results of the votes in front of the Central Election Commission building.
