ULAN BATOR, May 21, 2009 (AFP) - Mongolia, one of the world's youngest democracies, goes to the polls Sunday to choose a new president amid deep suspicions over whether the elections will be fair.
The nation emerged from communism 19 years ago but elections are routinely plagued by rumours of fraud and bribery - and last year were blighted by riots in the streets of the capital Ulan Bator that left five dead.
The race for the presidency is between incumbent Nambaryn Enkhbayar of the former communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) and Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, the ex-leader of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP).
Elbegdorj, 46, is targeting an end to graft and inequality in the nation of nearly three million people.
"Shall we change? Corruption and poverty are both excessive. Unemployment and unfairness have gained ground," he told crowds at a recent rally.
The 50-year-old Enkhbayar pledged during an election rally in Ulan Bator to bring the nation together.
"I will unite the Mongolians, and we will make this country great," said the president, also a former prime minister.
The slight favourite is Elbegdorj, once a celebrated leader of a peaceful revolution that ended 70 years of communist rule.
Twice prime minister, he was DP leader at the time of deadly riots in July 2008 after parliamentary elections and was blamed by some, including Prime Minister Sanj Bayar, for instigating the riots by making vote-rigging allegations - a charge he has vehemently denied.
Underlining lingering suspicions over Mongolia's politics, nearly two thirds of respondents questioned said this year's polls would be tainted by corruption, according to a poll on popular Mongolian website gogo.mn.
Observers say financial issues will play a major role in the elections.
The global financial crisis has led to plummeting mineral prices in Mongolia, leading to a rise in unemployment and the construction industry is sluggish.
"The main issues in this election are populist issues based on money for the people," said G. Arslan, the leader of Citizens For Justice, a Mongolian non-governmental organisation.
In March, Canada's Ivanhoe Mines said the Mongolian cabinet had given the long-awaited green light for a proposal to develop the Oyu Tolgoi mine, one of the world's richest copper deposits.
Since then, lengthy negotiations about what percentage of revenues Ivanhoe ought to give the government, and what percentage it should keep for itself, continue to hamper progress in parliament, which must approve the deal.
And Mongolians see little difference between the two candidates.
This is partly because their respective parties have entered into a coalition in parliament and therefore pursue similar policies on a day-to-day basis.
"The fact that the two parties have worked in a coalition will make it harder for the Mongolian voters to differentiate between the two," said Arshad Sayed, the World Bank's representative in Mongolia.
Voter indifference is reflected in what could be the lowest-ever turnout on Sunday. A survey of 9,000 people by Olloo, a Mongolian news website, showed that only 56 percent planned to vote. Election turnout is normally well over 75 percent.
Mongolia shook off communist rule in 1990 without a shot being fired, and the first elections were held in 1992.
The MPRP ruled the country during the period when it was a Soviet satellite.
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