Page | 34The MPRP returned to power in 2000, lost parliamentary elections in 2004, and regained
power again in 2008. That year, charges of fraud by the losing Democratic Party ignited
violent protests in Ulaanbaatar.^177 Following the country’s first incident of election
violence, Mongolia’s Prime Minister responded by putting the capital city under a state of
emergency.^178 In the shadows of such political discontent, the presidential election in
2009, won by Tsakhia Elbedorj, proved peaceful and was judged fair by all competing
parties and international observers. Primary issues during the presidential campaign were
the elimination of governmental corruption and the fair distribution of Mongolia’s
mineral revenues.^179
(^177) James Brooke, “A Cunning Opposition Turns Tables in Mongolia,” New York Times, 8 July 2004,
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00F16F73E5F0C7B8CDDAE0894DC404482&fta=y&inc
amp=archive:article_related
(^178) Edward Wong, “In Election Dispute, a Challenge for Mongolia’s Democracy,” New York Times, 8 July
2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/world/asia/08mongolia.html?pagewanted=1&ref=mongolia
(^179) Jason Subler, “Opposition Wins Mongolia Presidential Election,” Reuters, 25 May 2009,
http://www.reuters.com/article/2009/05/25/us-mongolia-idUSTRE54O2HX20090525