Ilham Aliyev secures significant lead in Azerbaijan presidential election

BAKU -- Incumbent President Ilham Aliyev is leading by a great margin in the early presidential elections in Azerbaijan, according to multiple exit polls released Wednesday.

Aliyev is leading with 93.9 percent of votes while parliament member and self-nominated Zahid Oruj is in second place with 1.8 percent, according to data from a joint poll conducted by Azerbaijan's Citizens' Labor Rights Protection League and the American organization Oracle Advisory Group.

A separate exit poll released by the Azerbaijan Center for Sociological Research showed the current president securing 92.4 percent of votes, according to Russia's RIA Novosti news agency.

Local media in Azerbaijan also reported that some 92.6 percent of voters had cast their ballots for Ilham Aliyev, citing the Opinion Monitoring Center.

Seven candidates are running for the presidency, including Aliyev, who is running for the post for the fifth time. In the last elections in 2018, Aliyev was supported by 86.22 percent of voters with a turnout of 74.5 percent.