The Politics of Azerbaijan takes place in a framework of a semi-presidential republic, with the President of Azerbaijan as the head of state, and the Prime Minister of Azerbaijan as head of government. Executive power is exercised by the president and the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. The Judiciary is nominally independent of the executive and the legislature. The state system of Azerbaijan defines the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan. According to the constitution, Azerbaijan is a democratic, secular, unitary republic.
Heydar Alirza oglu Aliyev was an Azerbaijani politician who served as the third President of Azerbaijan from October 1993 to October 2003. As national president he held constitutional powers, but his influence on Azerbaijani politics had begun years earlier. As a young man he had joined the Azerbaijan SSR People's Commissariat for State Security (NKGB) and quickly rose to the rank of Major-General.
The Constitution of Azerbaijan was adopted on 12 November 1995 by popular referendum. This Constitution was the first Constitution of independent Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic founded in 1918 and existed 23 months until 1920 was not able to adopt its constitution. Therefore, the history of Constitution building in Azerbaijan generally starts from the period of Azerbaijan being part of Soviet Union. The first Constitution of Azerbaijan SSR was adopted in 1921 and was in accordance with the Constitution of USSR. The last Constitution of Azerbaijan SSR was adopted on 21 April 1978 and also was in line and form of USSR Constitution. The first Constitution of independent Azerbaijan consists of 5 chapters, 12 sections and 147 articles. It was amended on 24 August 2002 and again on 18 March 2009. It carries the "highest legal force" in Azerbaijan as per article 147. The most recent amendments to the Constitution were approved after the Constitutional referendum held on 26 September 2016. In 2002, 31 amendments were made to 22 articles; in 2009, 41 amendments were made to 29 articles; and in 2016, 23 articles were amended and new 6 new articles were added.
The Heydar Aliyev Center is a 57,500 m2 (619,000 sq ft) building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles. The center is named after Heydar Aliyev, the first secretary of Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of Azerbaijan Republic from October 1993 to October 2003.
A constitutional referendum was held in Azerbaijan on 18 March 2009. It consisted of 29 measures voted on separately; the most controversial were a measure to abolish presidential term limits and a measure to greatly restrict press freedom. The measures passed, with approval of measures between 87.14% and 91.76%, disapproval between 4.59% and 7.24% and invalid votes between 3.64% and 5.70%; turnout was 71.08%.
A referendum to amend the Constitution of Liberia was held on 23 August 2011. Voters chose whether to ratify four amendments regarding judge tenure, elections scheduling, presidential candidate requirements and the electoral system. The National Elections Commission of Liberia (NEC) oversaw the referendum.
A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt on 19 March 2011, following the 2011 Egyptian revolution. More than 14 million (77%) were in favour, while around 4 million (23%) opposed the changes; 41% of 45 million eligible voters turned out to vote.
The First Lady of Azerbaijan is the informal title of the wife of the President of Azerbaijan. The current First Lady is Mehriban Aliyeva, wife of President Ilham Aliyev, who has held the position since 31 October 2003.
A constitutional referendum was held in Uruguay on 29 November 1942, alongside general elections. The new constitution was approved by 77.17% of voters.
Presidential elections were held in Azerbaijan on 9 October 2013. The result was a victory for incumbent President Ilham Aliyev, who received 84.5% of the vote, whilst leading opposition candidate Jamil Hasanli finished second with 5.5% of the vote.
A constitutional referendum was held in Azerbaijan on 24 August 2002. Voters were asked eight separate questions, all of which were approved with at least 96% voting in favour.
A fifteen-part constitutional referendum was held in Colombia on 25 October 2003. Whilst all fifteen proposals were approved by voters, only one question had a sufficient numbers of votes to pass the 25% quorum requirement.
The master plan of Baku White City refers to the re-development of a portion of Black City, 221-hectare land area, conceptualized to be part of the 2021 strategic plan for Baku.
The following lists events that happened during 2016 in Azerbaijan.
After gaining independence, Azerbaijan has taken important measures throughout the country to improve its legal system, enhance justice and efficiency.
Ilham Aliyev is the 4th President of the Republic of Azerbaijan. His presidency began in 2003, after what he was twice (2008,2013) elected to the post of President of the country.
