Kazakhstan’s newly formed pro-government party wins parliamentary election

The victory of Adilet, founded earlier this year, is likely to consolidate the power of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Kazakhstan’s pro-government Adilet party won more than 71 percent of the vote in Sunday’s parliamentary election, said the electoral commission in a result likely to consolidate the power of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Announcing the results on Monday, the commission said that four other blocs also entered parliament: the pro-business Respublika and Ak Zhol parties, the centre-left Nationwide Social Democratic Party and the Auyl party, which represents rural voters.

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According to the commission, 74 percent of eligible voters cast ballots to choose the new 145-member, single-chamber parliament, called the Kurultai. Approximately 12.6 million of the 20 million population were eligible to vote.

Adilet was founded in the Central Asian nation earlier this year and is led by Tokayev’s top aides. Shortly after its inception, it absorbed the previous ruling party, Amanat. All four other parties entering parliament are also seen as broadly supportive of Tokayev’s administration.

Sunday’s election was triggered by a new constitution adopted earlier this year, which streamlined parliament from two chambers into one.

Kazakhstan’s Supreme Court ruled last month that the new constitution allows Tokayev to run for a new seven-year term.

Officials say that the structural change aims to give parliament more weight in political decision-making. Previously, it was confined to a largely auxiliary role under a system that concentrated power in the presidency.

A former Soviet diplomat and top United Nations official, Tokayev has led Central Asia’s largest economy since 2019, maintaining warm relations with the West, Russia and China.

Tokayev has also championed a reform programme called “Just Kazakhstan”. The initiative followed riots in 2022 when 238 people were killed as cost-of-living protests escalated.

The 73-year-old president said he is trying to move away from the legacy of his authoritarian predecessor, Nursultan Nazarbayev, who ruled for three decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tokayev originally took office as the chosen successor of Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan’s founding president, who governed from 1991 to 2019.

While voting in the capital, Astana, Tokayev told journalists it was too early to say whether he would seek another term.

He also said that he would name his choice for vice president, the newly created office under the new constitution, within the next seven to 10 days, adding that it would be a “well-known” person.