Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong goes to the polls in Hai Ba Trung district, Hanoi (Photo: VNA)

On May 23, the television broadcaster NHK reported that voters wore masks, disinfected their hands and had their temperatures checked before casting ballots.

At a polling station in Hanoi, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said voters should fulfill their citizen duties and elect the most suitable candidates.

The same day, Kyodo News news agency said Vietnam held its one-in-five-years parliamentary election while taking precautions to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus amid a spike in new cases.

Polling stations have taken strict precautions such as temperature checks, physical distancing and wearing of masks.

The results will be announced by mid-June.

A day earlier, Nikkei Asia said Vietnam has gone on high alert nationwide in order to contain COVID-19 outbreaks in the north in the context of the election.