Uzbekistan says incumbent President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has won a new term

Uzbekistan’s Central Election Commission, citing preliminary results, said on Monday that President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has been re-elected with 87.1% of the vote.

He was widely expected to win a third term after calling the snap presidential poll which took place on Sunday.

This followed a constitutional referendum earlier this year which paved the way for him to serve two more presidential terms. It also increased the mandate from five to seven years.

The 65-year-old leader has opened up the tightly controlled former Soviet republic to foreign investment and tourism, but there is still little political freedom in the country.