ASTANA – The Adilet party secured 71.17% of the vote in Kazakhstan’s first elections to the Kurultai, according to preliminary results announced by the Central Election Commission (CEC) on Aug. 24.
Photo credit: Akorda
A total of 9,351,539 citizens participated in the election out of 12,623,289 registered voters, bringing preliminary voter turnout to 74.08%. The Adilet party received 6,528,948 votes, or 71.17%, according to the preliminary results. The Auyl People’s Democratic Patriotic Party received 574,621 votes, or 6.26%, followed by Respublica with 509,631 votes, or 5.56%, the Aq Zhol Democratic Party with 478,083 votes, or 5.21%, and the Nationwide Social Democratic Party with 469,058 votes, or 5.11%.
The People’s Party of Kazakhstan received 285,395 votes, or 3.11%, while the Baytaq Green Party received 97,751 votes, or 1.07%. The Against All option received 2.51% of the vote.
Under Kazakhstan’s election legislation, political parties must secure at least 5% of the vote to qualify for seats in the Kurultai. Based on the preliminary figures, five parties crossed the threshold.
Voting concludes abroad
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, all 79 overseas polling stations established at Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions and consular offices in 61 countries have completed their work as of 8 a.m. Astana time.
A total of 9,623 Kazakh citizens cast their ballots abroad, representing a voter turnout of 84.4% among registered overseas voters. The protocols of overseas precinct election commissions will be transmitted to the CEC for inclusion in the overall election results.
What comes next
The figures announced by the CEC are preliminary. The commission is expected to establish the official election results by Aug. 30. The formation of the new Kurultai will trigger a series of political and institutional changes under Kazakhstan’s new constitutional framework.
Following the formation of the Kurultai, the government is expected to resign. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on election day that changes would be made to the composition of the cabinet, while stressing that personnel changes should be aimed at giving the Government new momentum rather than being made for the sake of dismissals.
Another expected institutional change is the appointment of a Vice President. Tokayev said the name of the person who will take the newly established position is expected to become known within a week or 10 days.
First election under new constitutional system
The Aug. 23 election was the first parliamentary election held under Kazakhstan’s new constitutional system. The 145-member Kurultai replaced the country’s former bicameral Parliament under the Constitution that took effect July 1.
All seats are allocated proportionally through party lists in a single nationwide constituency. Seven political parties fielded a total of 545 candidates. A total of 10,423 polling stations were established in Kazakhstan and abroad, with more than 12.6 million citizens registered to vote.
Overall, 777 foreign observers from 42 countries and 13 international organizations were accredited to monitor the election.
