Kazakh elections lead to governing party solidifying power

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 14 Jan 2021 by Alex Teddy

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On January 11 Kazakhstan held a parliamentary election. As expected, the Nur Otan Party won most of the seats in the Mazhilis (parliament). Nur Otan (Radiant Fatherland) still has Nazarbayev as its chairman.The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) castigated the election as a sham, replete with the state orchestrating the result and thwarting observers. The OSCE said it was unable to observe counting, so it cannot say whether or not ballot-box stuffing, impersonation or discounting of valid votes took place. The dearth of transparency is suspicious.The OSCE points out that real opposition parties are banned as 'extremist', and the few mild opposition parties that exist are unable to get onto the ballot. The OSCE made recommendations in previous elections about how to hold fair elections. The government has failed to implement these, despite promising to do so.Nur Otan won 71% of the vote and 76/107 seats in the Mazhilis. Ak Zhol and the People's Party won the remaining seats. These two parties are resolutely pro-government.Some had thought that under Tokaev the country had turned over a new leaf. Far from it: the same authoritarian methods are being used rigorously. Those administering the elections are not thought to be even handed.The Kazakh media is among the most unfree in the world. Lese-majeste makes Nazarbayev and his family immune from criticism. The All-National Social Democratic Party did not participate in the election. It said it did not wish to legitimize a sham. The police rounded up the usual suspects before the election. Recent legislation has made life much harder for NGOs. It is almost impossible for people to verify the authenti...