Kazakhstan ruling party wins 53.9% of vote

A man votes during the parliamentary elections in Almaty on March 19, 2023. The PHOTO AFP ASTANA-Kazakhstan ruling Amanat party won 53.9 percent of the vote in a snap parliamentary election, according to official data on Monday, giving President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev a clear mandate to reform the oil-rich nation in line with his social justice objectives.

In Sunday's election, no opposition parties ran, but Western criticism was less pronounced than usual, as Europe and the United States try to strengthen ties with Russia's neighbors that have been shaken by Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine.

According to the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, reforms made ahead of the vote addressed some of the democracy watchdog's prior recommendations and increased choice for voters, although further changes were needed, according to observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Despite a formal easing of the requirements for party registration, such as the number of signatures they need to present from every region, no opposition parties were able to register ahead of the vote.

At least one opposition group accused the government of deliberately denying it registration.

A senior Kazakh official said that the decision to note positive changes as well as areas of concern was a welcome encouragement for the country's authorities to work towards greater democracy.

Such comments are important given the geopolitical context of the elections and the unprecedented tensions the region and the world have been going through since last year, he said.

The election of the lower chamber completes a shake-up of the Central Asian nation's political elite, which began when Tokayev sidelined his former patron and predecessor Nursultan Nazarbayev in early 2021 amid violent unrest.

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Tokayev, 69, has pledged to ensure a more equitable distribution of wealth in his vast but sparsely populated country, rich in hydrocarbons and minerals.

Russia, a political heavyweight in the Central Asian region and Kazakhstan's biggest trading partner, welcomed the election results as a clear endorsement of Tokayev and his political and economic reforms.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that we reaffirm our commitment in principle to further strengthening multifaceted Russian-Kazakh co-operation, including through the parliamentary system.