Azerbaijan votes to amend Constitution

By Ruslan Rehimov

BAKU (AA) – More than 86 percent of Azerbaijanis voted to amend the country's Constitution, the Central Election Committee said late Monday.

The amendments will create new leadership positions including a "First Vice Presidency" and a number of deputy presidents, extending the president’s term from five to seven years.

The new First Vice President position will also carry immunity from prosecution.

Unofficial results show 70 percent of voters – more than 3.6 million people cast ballots in the referendum.

More than 5 million voters were registered to take part and 38 polling stations were set up for Azerbaijanis living abroad.

The referendum was watched by 117 international observers and 53,300 local observers were also on duty.