On meetings with international observers

On the threshold of the elections of Members of the Mazhilis of the Parliament and Maslikhats of the Republic of Kazakhstan, members of the Central Election Commission held a series of meetings with delegations of foreign and international observers. In total, 9 meetings were held with international organisations, 7 bilateral meetings with members of foreign electoral bodies, and a briefing was held for international media.

Meetings with delegations of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, the Organization of Turkic States, the Union of the Russian Federation and Belarus, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, and the Turkic Parliamentary Assembly were held.

For the same purpose, members of the electoral bodies of Azerbaijan, Moldova, Mongolia, Armenia, Belarus, Hungary, Georgia, India, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Romania, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, the Republic of Türkiye and the Philippines arrived in Kazakhstan. The election commissions of the five countries were personally headed by their chairpersons.

During the meetings, Chairman of the Central Election Commission Nurlan Abdirov briefed the guests on the preparation and holding of early elections of Mazhilis Members to the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, spoke about the results of the registration of candidates for representatives, paying special attention to the fact that all registration procedures were carried out on the principles of publicity and openness in accordance with constitutional norms. The election commissions took the necessary measures to implement the constitutional rights of citizens.

At the meeting of Nurlan Abdirov with the head of the Mission of Observers from the CIS Leonid Anfimov, it was noted that Kazakhstan attaches great importance to the presence of missions of international organisations to observe elections, because international observation plays an important role in protecting the integrity and transparency of elections.

During meetings with CEC Chairpersons of Moldova and Azerbaijan, Angelica Caraman and Mazahir Panahov, they showed great interest in the implementation of novelties of the electoral legislation and highly appreciated the work carried out in the regions of the country.

As a matter of fact, on voting day, 793 observers from 41 foreign countries and 12 international organisations worked at polling stations in Kazakhstan. They exercised the powers of observers for the elections of Mazhilis Members to the Parliament at polling stations in all regions of the republic, as well as at polling stations abroad.

Most of the delegations participated in the observation of electoral processes in our country not for the first time. All of them noted the high organisational level of the electoral process.

It is noted that the current legislative framework of the country allows for the successful implementation of political reforms aimed at the democratisation of social processes. The improvement of the electoral legislation contributes to the formation of a new political model that meets the needs and interests of citizens. New norms also contribute to strengthening the confidence of citizens in state and political institutions.

High involvement of youth and volunteers in the electoral process was also highlighted, and the fact that Kazakhstan’s practice of involving the younger generation in the electoral process can be a good example for other countries.

High interest was shown in the implementation of novelties of the electoral legislation and a high assessment was given to the work carried out in the regions of the country.

It was particularly noted that the polling stations were well equipped, necessary conditions for voting, including for citizens with special needs were created. For visually impaired people, there were folders with information in Braille, additional lighting, magnifiers, etc.

On March 20, representatives of the Election Observation Mission from the CIS countries, which included the CIS Executive Committee, the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly and the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, held a briefing at the CEC press centre.

They shared their general impressions of the elections to the Mazhilis of the Parliament held on March 19, noting that 196 observers from the CIS Mission observed the electoral process. They got acquainted with the work of election commissions in the capital and all regions of the country.

Representatives of the Mission stressed that the elections in the country were held within the framework of national legislation and ensuring all opportunities for the implementation of the electoral right of citizens. The outstanding work of the regional election commissions was noted.

The election campaign was competitive and aroused great public interest, which is also confirmed by the large number of self-nominated candidates and political parties participating in the election race.

According to CIS observers, the Central Election Commission and local commissions took the necessary measures to prepare and conduct elections in accordance with the requirements of the law, demonstrating high professionalism and the proper organisational level of the completed electoral campaign.

Based on the results of the observation, the CIS Mission expressed its gratitude to the Central Election Commission for the high level of organisation of the entire electoral campaign.

In general, international experts on monitoring the electoral process concluded that at all stages of the elections, everything took place in accordance with the requirements of national legislation and generally accepted international requirements for the organisation and conduct of free and democratic elections.

They also stressed that the past elections were the end of the electoral marathon, which began with the national referendum. Now a new round of political and economic development can be expected from Kazakhstan.