ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 23. People are
voting voluntarily and in good spirits in Kazakhstan’s elections to
the Kurultai, Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Kazakhstan
and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps Montaser Abu Zeid said during a
briefing, Trend’s
special correspondent reports from Astana.
“As the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the
State of Palestine to the Republic of Kazakhstan, I am an
international observer. Regarding today’s elections, we visited
many polling stations from early morning. There were no violations.
People are voting voluntarily, in good spirits and without any
pressure.
I would like to congratulate the people of Kazakhstan and its
wise leadership headed by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on
holding democratic elections and wish the people of Kazakhstan
peace, security and stability,” Abu Zeid said.
Elections to the Kurultai, Kazakhstan’s new unicameral
parliament established under the Constitution that came into force
on July 1, 2026, began today.
The Kurultai will consist of 145 deputies elected for a
five-year term. The elections are being held under a proportional
representation system, with deputies elected from party lists in a
single nationwide electoral district.
According to the Central Election Commission of Kazakhstan,
12,605,788 voters have been included in the electoral lists. A
total of 10,423 polling stations have been prepared, including 79
polling stations in 61 countries abroad.
Seven political parties are participating in the elections:
Adilet, the Nationwide Social Democratic Party, the Baytaq
Kazakhstan Green Party, the People’s Party of Kazakhstan, Auyl, the
Ak Zhol Democratic Party of Kazakhstan and Respublica.
International experts are monitoring the voting process. A total
of 777 international observers from 42 countries have been
registered. Representatives of 13 international organizations are
also participating in observation missions.
The Kurultai will replace Kazakhstan’s former bicameral
Parliament, which consisted of the Mazhilis and the Senate.
As of 14:00, 6,696,002 voters had received ballots nationwide,
representing 53.12% of those included in the electoral lists.
