Five Parties Secure Seats in Kazakhstan's New Unicameral Parliament with 74.08% Voter Turnout

ASTANA, August 24. /TASS/. Five parties will receive seats in Kazakhstan’s unicameral parliament (Kurultai) following the elections, with voter turnout reaching 74.08%, the Central Election Commission (CEC) reported at a briefing. According to its calculations, the Adilet party received 71.17% of the vote, Auyl garnered 6.26%, Respublica received 5.56%, Aq Jol had 5.21%, and the Nationwide Social Democratic Party got 5.11% of the vote. The People’s Party of Kazakhstan and Baytaq did not secure seats in the Kurultai, receiving 3.11% and 1.07% of the vote, respectively. The CEC chairman, Nurlan Abdirov, said that 9,351,539 of the country’s 12,623,289 eligible voters participated in the election. "According to preliminary information, voter turnout was 74.08%," he said. Another 2.51% of voters selected the "none of the above" option on the ballot.· Meanwhile, international observers noted that the elections were conducted with a high level of organization and were fair and competitive. "The Commonwealth of Independent States observer mission has concluded that the elections for lawmakers to the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan on August 23, 2026, were conducted at a high organizational level in full compliance with Kazakhstan’s electoral legislation. They were fair, competitive, and open, and ensured the right of Kazakh citizens to freely express their will," Igor Petrishenko, head of the CIS observer mission and first deputy secretary-general of the organization, said. CIS observers also pointed out that the pre-election campaign was well-organized and complied with national election law requirements. The observer mission said election commissions, government bodies and media outlets provided broad coverage of the preparation and conduct of the elections. Elections for lawmakers to the new unicameral parliament were held in Kazakhstan on August 23. More than 10,000 polling stations were open on election day, including 79 abroad. A new constitution providing for the transition from a bicameral to a unicameral parliament came into force in the country on July 1. The Kurultai has 145 members, who were elected solely from party lists, and their term of office will be five years. To enter parliament, parties had to clear a minimum threshold of 5%.