R 080022Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY ULAANBAATAR
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 2336
INFO AMEMBASSY BEIJING 
AMEMBASSY SEOUL 
AMEMBASSY TOKYO 
NSC WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS ULAANBAATAR 000332 
 
 
SENSTIVE 
 
STATE FOR EAP/CM, EAP/EX, DRL AND INR/EAP 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM PREL KPAO MG
SUBJECT: Flavor of Mongolian Democracy: Impressions of Distant 
Polling Stations 
 
REF: (A) ULAANBAATAR 320  (B) ULAANBAATAR 322 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. 
 
¶1. (SBU)  SUMMARY:  This cable describes conditions at far-flung 
polling stations in Khovd province some 1,500 kilometers from 
Ulaanbaatar.  The Embassy's election observation team was impressed 
with the highly organized, efficient and transparent processes of 
the local election committees as well as voters' commitment to the 
democratic process, with some traveling great distances by horse to 
just to cast their ballot on June 29.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU)  One of the Embassy's election monitoring teams for the 
June 29 parliamentary election, comprised of the Consular Chief, 
Pol/Econ Intern and FSN Interpreter, flew 1,500 km west of 
Ulaanbaatar to Khovd province to observe the election process. 
(Note: This is the farthest and most remote area international 
election monitoring teams visited during Mongolia's election. End 
Note).  The team visited 11 polling stations in the aimag (province) 
capital and surrounding areas and was impressed with the highly 
organized, efficient and transparent processes of the local election 
committees. Two of the polling stations the team visited were in 
gers (Note: A ger is a temporary round felt shelter used by nomadic 
herdsmen, perhaps better known as a "yurt" in Russian. End Note), 
far from any paved road or permanent man-made structure. Although 
remote and somewhat primitive, these ger polling stations were well 
organized and run in strict accordance with Mongolia's Election 
Law. 
 
Democracy At Work In Isolated Ger Polling Stations 
---------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) To reach the Narriingol ("Narrow River") polling station, 
the observation team traveled 30 km by four-wheel drive vehicle, 
across rocky desert terrain and through the Buyant River. The small 
ger was packed with observers, election officials and voters but 
operated efficiently and in compliance with election rules. Some of 
the 416 voters at this station traveled 50 km to vote, some by horse 
but mostly by motorcycle or in vehicles provided by the non-partisan 
local election committee. The voters here were excited about 
participating in the democratic process and one of them, a horse 
trainer dressed in his traditional Mongolian Del, proudly stated 
that his district had the best 14 candidates in the whole country. 
The big topics of discussion among voters outside the station were 
cashmere prices, horse racing and cattle. A local doctor took 
advantage of the large crowd to offer blood-pressure tests and other 
medical advice to voters. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The observation team also visited a more isolated polling 
station also set up in a ger. Naranhairhang ("Sunny Mountain") 
polling station was over 40 km from the paved roads of Khovd City 
and it got its power from a small solar panel. All major political 
parties had observers present and the polling station had all the 
supplies, equipment and election personnel needed to handle its 201 
registered voters. Naranhairhang's politically diverse election 
committee greeted the observation team with excitement and was eager 
to be photographed. Committee members expressed their appreciation 
that international observers would travel so far to visit them. 
Some of the polling station's voters traveled as far as 80 km on 
horseback or motorcycle and by 16:00 on Election Day, 150 of them 
had already cast their votes. During the visit, local election 
officials offered observation team members dried cheese and other 
local delicacies as a gesture of hospitality. Even in this isolated 
region the polling station operated by-the-book and election 
officials were proud of their ability to provide people in the 
countryside a chance to exercise their democratic right to vote. 
 
MINTON