Mongolians cast their ballots in the country's general election on 29 June, as President Tsakhia Elbegdorj encouraged citizens to vote. With a population of three million people, the remote country has been a democracy ever since the Mongolian Revolution of 1990 .
Yet for people like Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar, the voting process is a long one. It took Shatarbaatar seven days to reach his nearest polling station, accompanied by more than 2,000 sheep, horses and goats.
Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar casts his vote in Mandalgovi in the Gobi desertJohannes Eisele/ AFP
More than half of Mongolia's population is under 30. They grew up during a time of rapid change following a peaceful political revolution in 1990 that saw the Soviet system replaced by democracy. The slow economy under the ruling of the Democratic Party has disillusioned much of the younger generation, who could potentially play a decisive role in these elections. Yet, with a population so small and with powerful neighbouring countries such as Russia and China, Mongolia has struggled to benefit from its vast natural resources.
"We've had enough of the older guys," Badral Bayasal, a candidate for the Civil Movement Party, told Reuters. "Our generation of millennials are making a change, and it's our time to express our voices."
Villagers leave a polling station after voting for the parliamentary elections on the outskirt of UlaanbaatarJason Lee/ ReutersA woman votes for the parliamentary elections at a polling station on the outskirt of UlaanbaatarJason Lee/ Reuters
According to Reuters, polls suggest that voters are likely to give more seats to the main opposition Mongolian People's Party (MPP), which ruled from 2008 to 2012. Since then, Mongolia has borrowed billions of dollars in sovereign debt. The MPP has criticised the Democrats' economic management and such mass borrowing, promising to reassess spending and tighten fiscal management.
The Democrats defended their use of bond proceeds, explaining that is being used to help start new industries, while aiming to replace imports with domestic products. They have also pitched a plan for a wealth fund to make the economy resilient and decentralise the government.
Herder Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar is greeted by an elderly woman in front of a polling station in Mandalgovi in the Gobi desertJohannes Eisele/ AFPBuyantogtokhiin Uugantsetseg, a family member of herder Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar, stands in front of a truck in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar (L) and Zandraagiin Budjar carrying a foal on their bike to stay with its herd overnight in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar herds his horses in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPA boy plays in the suburbs of Mongolia's capital, UlaanbaatarJohannes Eisele/ AFP
Yet stability during the time of the MPP rule has helped lure investors. However, despite having exports such as copper, livestock, coal and crude oil, it has since struggled to adapt to China's reduced appetite, which has hit commodities prices.
"I'm thinking let's support the Mongolian People's party, when we vote for that party our lives, our future, our destiny will be much better," Batsaikhan, a resident of the grasslands around the country's capital, Ulaanbaatar, said in comments during a television broadcast.
Election results are expected from 30 June.
An elderly woman casts her vote in the parliamentary elections at a polling station in Mandalgovi in the middle of Gobi provinceJohannes Eisele/ AFPHerder Dambiin Otgontsetseg, who is married toPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar, holding a bowl of tea in her mobile home in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPHerder Dambiin Otgontsetseg, who ismarried to Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar, washes her face from a bottle hanging from the family's mobile home in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPHerder Shagdarjaviiu Batsargal, who works with Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar, carries an injured sheep in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPHerder Zandraagiin Budjav, who works with Pagvajaviin Shatarbaatar sits on his motorbike in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar saddles his horse in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPTavan Tolgoi, Mongolia's largest coal mine located in the Southern Gobi desertJohannes Eisele/ AFPPeople leave a polling station after voting for the parliamentary elections in Mandalgovi, Gobi provinceJohannes Eisele/ AFPCabins for tourists are seen on the grasslands on the outskirt of UlaanbaatarJason Lee/ ReutersPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar rides a horse, as he prepares to catch one of his horses in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPMongolian flag flies on the top of parliament building in UlaanbaatarJason Lee/ ReutersA man reads his ballot paper with a magnifier before he fills it for the parliamentary elections at a polling station on the outskirt of UlaanbaatarJason Lee/ ReutersPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar rides his bike while he herds his livestock in the Gobi desert near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFPPagvajaviin Shatarbaatar stands in the Gobi desert, near LuusiinJohannes Eisele/ AFP