His platform called for a progressive socialist society, but he was continually criticized for not boycotting the election. Kazimili was the most lackluster of the candidates, and, according to most Azeris, Ashraf Mehtiyev simply had no money to run a campaign. Mehtiyev sought state control over the oil sector, favored an Azeri autonomous republic within Armenia, and supposedly wanted to liberate Karabakh even faster than Sulimanov. Numerous groups boycotted the elections, including the Popular Front and Musavat, the Equality party. The various groups boycotting the election formed one movement to push for democratic reforms, but they were forbidden to register their organization.
Most people now think that boycotting the election was a mistake.
Although newspapers are largely unread outside the capital, more than 90 percent of Azeri households have a television. All six candidates got free air time, but the bias in favor of Aliyev was evident. At the two state-run television stations, Aliyev typically received eighteen hours of air time for every six minutes received by competing candidates. Clearly, Aliyev s campaign benefited from disproportionate media coverage. Our team witnessed several glaring election violations, ranging from stuffed ballots to intimidation.