Kazakhstan Sets a Date for Early Presidential Elections

The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, announced on Wednesday that early presidential elections would be held on November 20 after a set of amendments to the Magna Carta were approved last June.

The Kazakh president said the electoral campaign "will be carried out fairly and openly and with a wide participation of national and international observers."

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On this basis, the Kazakh Presidency instructed the Central Electoral Commission to guarantee the elections' conditions. In contrast, local authorities were asked to prepare the lists of voters.

Although the first term of the current head of state was due to expire in 2024, last September, he announced that the elections would be brought forward to October and November of this year.

Accordingly, Tokayev stated, "this will allow us to focus on addressing long-term tasks in the future and ensure sustainable economic growth, improve the welfare and quality of life of citizens."

According to recent constitutional amendments following the wave of protests earlier this year, the president's term of office will be extended for a seven-year term but without the possibility of re-election.

The permanence or departure of the current president is a vitally important event after the signs of independence of Kazakhstan's foreign policy from Russia's and in contrast to the diplomacy exercised by the former president, Nursultan Nazarbayev.