Kazakhs began voting on Sunday in a snap parliamentary election that is expected to increase President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s power. This election follows a new constitution that changed parliament from two chambers to one. The supreme court confirmed that this allows Tokayev, who has been in office since 2019, to run for another seven-year term.
Polls show strong support for Adilet, a new pro-Tokayev party, which has absorbed the previous ruling party, Amanat. Several opposition parties, seen as loyal to Tokayev, are also participating. While voting in Astana, Tokayev mentioned it was too early to decide if he would run for another term. He was appointed by Kazakhstan’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and distanced himself from his predecessor after the unrest in 2022.
With information from Reuters
