Kazakhstan votes on Sunday in an early presidential election which should allow outgoing leader Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to consolidate his power, after a dark year marked by bloody riots and a ruthless clan struggle.
Polling stations in Central Asia’s largest country opened at 1:00 a.m. GMT and will close at 3:00 p.m. GMT, while the first exit polls are expected around 6:00 p.m. GMT.
A former Soviet republic rich in natural resources and located at the crossroads of important trade routes, Kazakhstan descended into chaos in January when protests against the high cost of living turned into riots, before being brutally suppressed. Balance sheet: 238 dead.
The country remains traumatized by this crisis and, a sign that tensions persist, the authorities announced on Thursday that they had arrested seven supporters of an opponent in exile accused of fomenting a “coup”.
Mr. Tokayev, who voted early in the capital Astana, should unsurprisingly be reappointed for the next seven years, with five almost unknown candidates facing him for the nearly twelve million voters.
It remains to be seen whether he will collect more than 71% of the votes as in 2019, a final score but far from the 98% obtained by his predecessor Nursultan Nazarbayev in 2015.
“Cut of State»
In Astana and Almaty, the country’s two largest cities, AFP saw several voters take photos of themselves outside polling stations, with many citing the “obligation” to show the photo on Monday at their place of work. .
This election aims to turn the page of a difficult year, but also to consecrate the reign of President Tokayev, 69, who has been trying for months to reduce the influence of the clan of his powerful predecessor and mentor Nursultan Nazarbayev, in the power for three decades.
Because this year has also seen Mr. Tokayev, a trained diplomat, turn into an implacable leader, firing on rioters in January, arresting relatives of Mr. Nazarbayev and standing up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose invasion he disapproves of. of Ukraine in February.
President Tokayev campaigned on his project to create a “New Kazakhstan”, more democratic and less unequal. But economic difficulties persist, as do authoritarian reflexes.
Coming to power in 2019 after the surprise resignation of the omnipotent Nazarbayev, Mr. Tokayev officially undertook to cut the cord in favor of the January crisis after having long been considered the henchman of his predecessor.
Hope and disillusion
Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which shocked the former Soviet republics, Mr. Tokayev has been trying to strengthen ties with China, but also with Europe as a counterweight to Russian influence.
In recent months, he has received visits from Russian, Turkish and Chinese heads of state as well as senior European officials, and even Pope Francis.
And promises of democratic openness and economic reform are resonating with the electorate.
“Since independence thirty years ago, almost nothing has changed, I would like to see significant changes,” hoped Nourlan N., police colonel and supporter of the outgoing president.
For Mourzada Massalina, a 68-year-old retiree met in Almaty, “Mr. Tokayev is the right candidate because he has a lot of experience”.
But this election supposed to open the era of “New Kazakhstan” gives a feeling of deja-vu, with a deserted political landscape, a façade of opposition and pressure from the authorities.
Enough to leave many disillusioned Kazakhs, like Alia Bokechova, a 19-year-old student in Astana, who will not vote. “It’s a waste of time, we already know who will win and we don’t know the other candidates,” she told AFP.
As the polls approach, the government has multiplied warnings, culminating in the announcement of a foiled “coup attempt” and the arrest of seven supporters of exiled opponent Mukhtar Abliazov .
President Tokaev also considered “unacceptable to glorify” those who took part in the January riots.
The international election observers of the OSCE regretted in a report that their recommendations “relating to fundamental freedoms and the conditions of eligibility and registration of candidates” have “remained without action”.