The building of the Parliament of the Republic of South Ossetia in TskhinvaliTSKHINVAL, Apr 10At 08:00 local time (coinciding with Moscow), presidential elections began in South Ossetia and abroad, 76 polling stations opened, which will work until 20:00. Five candidates are running for the post of head of the republic. This is the current head of state, the fourth president, Anatoly Bibilov, who has been acting since April 2017; as well as the leader of the Nykhas party Alan Gagloev, former MP Dmitry Tasoev, MP Garry Muldarov and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Alexander Pliev.The preparation of the referendum in South Ossetia may be completed by the summer Polling stations have opened in Tskhinvali and all four districts of South Ossetia — Tskhinvali, Dzau, Znur and Leningor. Four more are located abroad — two in North Ossetia and one each in Moscow and Sukhum. The security of each site will be provided by two security officials. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the republic, more than 600 law enforcement officers will be involved in the elections. The CEC of the republic, in which more than 32 thousand voters are registered, produced 40 thousand ballots. Citizens will have the opportunity to vote against all. Elections can be considered valid if more than 50% of voters turn out. To win in the first round, one of the candidates needs to get more than half of the votes. Foreign observers will follow the voting process — in particular, from Russia, the DPR, the LPR, Abkhazia, Austria, Venezuela, Syria, the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh, Nicaragua, Italy, Turkey. A total of 65 observers received accreditation. Some time after the elections, a referendum on unification with Russia is planned in the Transcaucasian republic. President Bibilov previously told RIA Novosti that his initiative for a nationwide vote on this issue is a step towards the «strategic goal» of the Ossetian people. Bibilov noted that Tskhinval had the opportunity to realize this goal back in 2014, when Crimea was reunited with the Russian Federation following a referendum, but then it was not realized. Moscow recognized the independence of South Ossetia (and with it Abkhazia, another former Georgian autonomy) August 26, 2008. Earlier that month, Russia came to the defense of South Ossetia from the Georgian army, which sought to return it to Tbilisi's rule. Since then, the Russian leadership has repeatedly stated that the recognition of both republics reflects the prevailing realities and is not subject to revision. return home to Russia
