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Millions of Vietnamese vote despite coronavirus lockdowns affecting many provinces
- Fewer independent candidates than before are standing in the election for the 500-seat National Assembly, which is held every five years
- The Communist Party – one of the last ruling communist parties in the world – retains tight control over Vietnam and its media
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Mask-wearing Vietnamese went to the polls on Sunday, with tens of millions expected to select a largely rubber-stamp legislature amid a rapidly spreading Covid-19 outbreak.
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Fewer independent candidates than before are standing in the election for the 500-seat National Assembly, which is held every five years and usually after the ruling Communist Party holds its congress to select a new leadership.
Despite increasing openness to social change in the Southeast Asia nation and a plethora of free trade deals, the Communist Party – one of the last ruling communist parties in the world – retains tight control over Vietnam and its media, and tolerates little dissent.
The nearly 69.2 million registered voters will also vote for members of the people’s councils at provincial and district levels.
“I hope all voters, knowing their role as the owners of the country, will join the vote to select the most trusted and worthy candidates to represent their voices,” National Assembly chairman Vuong Dinh Hue said ahead of the election.
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Some 92 per cent of candidates for the National Assembly are members of the Communist Party, which also essentially vets independent candidates.
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