The President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a decree on the holding of early presidential elections in the country. They were appointed on November 20.
This is reported on the official website of the president.
Tokayev noted that the presidential elections will be the first stage of the "reboot" of all authorities after the constitutional reform.
"Society has a clear understanding of the logic and prospects of our plans to transform the political system. Therefore, in accordance with the previously announced electoral schedule and in accordance with the countryʼs Constitution, today I signed a decree on the appointment of extraordinary presidential elections of the Republic of Kazakhstan for November 20, 2022," he explained.
After these elections, Kazakhstan is also planning to hold elections to the parliament and local authorities.
In June, Kazakhstan held a referendum on amendments to the Constitution. They foresee that references to the first president Nursultan Nazarbayev as the founder of independent Kazakhstan, as well as to his special status, will be completely removed from the Constitution. In addition, the countryʼs president is prohibited from being a member of political parties, he must be equidistant from all political movements in Kazakhstan, and his closest relatives cannot hold the highest government positions. In addition, now the president of Kazakhstan will be elected for one seven-year term and he will not have the right to run for a second term.
Parliament reform is also foreseen, in particular, the transition to a mixed electoral system: 70% of the parliament will be elected according to the proportional system, and 30% — according to the majoritarian system. Non-party citizens will also be able to run for parliament. This will lead to the transition of Kazakhstan from a super-presidential republic to a presidential republic with a strong parliament.
The work of the Constitutional Court will be restored in the country, the position of human rights commissioner will be introduced, and the death penalty will be banned at the legislative level.
- In Kazakhstan, large-scale protests against the increase in fuel prices began on January 2, but a day later they turned into an uprising against the regime. At first, the authorities made concessions on the issue of fuel, but already on January 5, the president called the protesters "terrorists" and called for help from the troops of the CSTO countries. In the cities, security forces and the military actively used combat weapons against people.
- On January 9, the Kazakh authorities announced that "the situation has stabilized and is under control" in all regions of the country. CSTO troops began to leave the country. According to the General Prosecutorʼs Office, 225 people died during the protests, including 19 law enforcement officers and soldiers.