TASHKENT, Uzbekistan — Uzbeks went to the polls in droves on Sunday for an election in which the result was a foregone conclusion: maintaining President Islam Karimov in power in the authoritarian Central Asian state, which he has led since 1989.

The main significance of the event seemed to be signaling that Mr. Karimov, 77, harbored no plans to step down any time soon, especially since a rift within his immediate family has taken on the overtones of a Shakespearean drama involving corruption and betrayal.

Mr. Karimov has led impoverished, landlocked Uzbekistan since it was still part of the Soviet Union and has used his 26 years in power to eliminate all opposition and even criticism.

“These elections mean nothing except that despite all the speculation about a possible transition in power in Uzbekistan, Karimov is staying,” said Alexey Malashenko, an expert on Central Asia at the Carnegie Moscow Center.