Moscow/Bishkek  - Kyrgyzstan's parliament on Friday set early presidential elections for July 23, timing that observers say hands the advantage to incumbent Kurmanbek Bakiyev.

Bakiyev, who came to power on the back of popular protest dubbed the Tulip revolution in 2005, announced last month he would seek a second term.

The former hero of the revolution was elected to a four-year term, but that was amended in the constitution to five. But with the declaration last month that new elections should take place in 2010, Bakiyev sparked public debate on the question.

The country's Constitutional Court ruled Thursday that the new vote must be held by October 25 at any date set by parliament, a body dominated by the pro-presidential party Ak-Jol.

The opposition charges the mid-summer elections are a ploy to seize the high ground and curtail their chances to prepare candidates.

Bakiyev is widely expected to win the election - though no other candidates have yet been put forth - but his popularity has dipped significantly as unemployment is on the rise in the impoverished state, power outages are frequent and people increasingly distrust their officials.

But Bakiyev's extraction of a pledge from Moscow for over 2 billion dollars in aide is likely to further bolster his position.

The opposition has accused the authorities of a clampdown on Bakiyev's rivals and is planning another in a series of large anti-government demonstrations. (dpa)