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Kazakh Voters Look Set To Elect Nazarbaev's Chosen Successor, Toqaev, As President

By RFE/RL June 08, 2019

Voters in Kazakhstan are electing a new president on June 9 as interim President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev looks set to continue in the post.

Toqaev was tapped by longtime authoritarian President Nursultan Nazarbaev as his successor when he stepped down on March 19 after nearly 30 years leading the energy-rich country, the largest in Central Asia.

The early election, which was called by Toqaev on April 9 to avoid "political uncertainty," is being criticized by Kazakh opposition activists an unfair and noncompetitive.

Toqaev, 66, is running against six government-approved candidates who are virtually unknown to voters and have little campaign or public support.

None of the elections held in Kazakhstan since it became independent in 1991 has been deemed free or fair by international organizations.

There have been an unusually large number of public demonstrations in Kazakhstan since Nazarbaev's resignation, with protesters calling for political reforms and many urging voters to boycott the vote.

Many activists have been detained and given fines or jail sentences, while some young male activists have been suddenly drafted into the army.

Large groups of Kazakh mothers have held numerous rallies in recent months to demand increased social benefits and housing, underscoring a general dissatisfaction with the government seen in other demonstrations and civil meetings.

Despite officially stepping down as president, Nazarbaev holds many important political positions and still wields considerable power within the country and inside his political party, Nur-Otan, whose presidential candidate is Toqaev.

Nazarbaev's reign was marked by economic progress fueled by plentiful reserves of oil and natural gas, but it was largely overshadowed by despotic rule that shut down independent media, suppressed protests, and trampled democratic norms.

Human Rights Watch wrote recently that Kazakhstan "heavily restricts" basic freedoms such as speech, religion, and assembly, while Freedom House calls the Kazakh government a "consolidated authoritarian regime."

A career diplomat educated in Moscow and considered an expert on China, Toqaev has served as Kazakh prime minister, foreign minister, and chairman of the Senate. He also worked for the United Nations in Geneva in 2011-13.

Toqaev has said publicly that he will continue the same policies as Nazarbaev if elected as president.

In preelection moves likely aimed at consolidating support for Toqaev, the state recently increased salaries for government employees and hiked welfare payments.

Nazarbaev's daughter, Darigha, replaced Toqaev as Senate leader in March and would be first in line to the presidency should anything happen to the president.

The six candidates permitted to run against Toqaev in the election are parliament deputies Jambyl Ahmetbekov and Dania Yespayeva, trade union leader Amangeldy Taspikhov, state sports executive Sadybek Tugel, scientist Toleutai Rahimbekov, and journalist Amirjan Qosanov.

Kazakhstan's voters among the population of 18.7 million will vote at 238 polling stations nationwide as well as at the Kazakh Embassy in Moscow and consulates in St. Petersburg, Kazan, Astrakhan, and Omsk.

Aware of the uptick in anti-government protests since Nazarbaev stepped down, the deputy mayor of the Kazakh capital -- newly reminted Nur-Sultan in honor of the former president -- said authorities are prepared for any "provocations."

"We are ready for any provocations [and are] working on different scenarios, but all this will be nipped in the bud as nothing must stand in the way of the voting," Erlan Kanalimov told TASS.

With reporting by Reuters and TASS

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakh-presidential- election-nazarbaev-toqaev/29988590.html

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Kazakh Voters Look Set To Elect Nazarbaev's Chosen Successor, Toqaev, As President