Kazakhstan’s interim president, the hand-picked successor of long time ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev, was declared the winner of Sunday's presidential election, defeating six other government-approved candidates.

The country’s Central Election Commission said on Monday that Kassym-Jomart Tokayev won nearly 71 percent of the vote with all the ballots counted and his nearest challenger, opposition candidate Amirzhan Kosanov, had about 16 percent.

Election observers were critical of the election.

"A lack of regard for fundamental rights, including detentions of peaceful protesters, and widespread voting irregularities on election day, showed scant respect for democratic standards," observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said of Sunday's vote.

Police in Kazakhstan have arrested about 500 protesters marching against Sunday's early presidential election that they call illegal.

Some protesters chanted "shame shame shame" as they were hauled away, urging police to ignore orders to arrest them and "come to the side of the people."

Opposition supporters had called for a boycott, saying Sunday's election would be neither free nor fair. They call it an illegal and orchestrated transfer of power from one authoritarian leader to another.

Tokayev became acting president in March, when Nazarbayev stunned Kazakhstan as he unexpectedly announced his resignation as president. He had said he would continue the same policies as Nazarbaev if elected president.

Nazarbaev governed the country since it was part of the Soviet Union and through its independence in 1991.

Although Kazakhstan has thrived economically because of huge oil and gas deposits, the country has a poor human rights record under Nazarbayev, with free speech suppressed and nearly all independent media outlets shut down. </s> Preliminary results show an ally of Kazakhstan’s former president has won the country’s presidential election.

Sunday’s vote was marred by a police crackdown on protesters who took to the streets against what they see as a mockery of democracy.

The Central Election Commission in the Central Asian country said Kassym-Jomart Tokayev won nearly 71% of the vote with all the ballots counted.

Mr Tokayev became acting president when Nursultan Nazarbayev, who had led the country since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, abruptly stepped down.

Shortly after Mr Nazarbayev resigned, Kazakhstan’s ruling party nominated Mr Tokayev for presidency in what was largely seen as an orchestrated handover of power.

Some 500 people were taken into custody after police broke up rallies in Kazakhstan’s two largest cities. </s> The handpicked successor of former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev was elected to the presidency on Sunday in a vote marred by clashes between protesters and police.

The electoral commission said that Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, a career diplomat, had won with 70.8% of the vote. The candidate with the next highest vote share, opposition rival Amirzhan Kossanov, won around 15%.

Turnout was at about 77%, according to the national elections commission.

Read more: Historic Kazakhstan election sparks hope for a taste of democracy

Tokayev, 66, became interim president in March after the resignation of Nazarbayev, who had ruled the country since Kazakhstan gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Yet Nazarbayev, who holds the official title of national leader, is set to exert significant influence on day-to-day politics as leader of the ruling Nur Otan party.

As he voted, Tokayev said Nazarbayev was "still in power in the capacity of chairman of the security council ... and other capacities."

Read more: Could Kazakhstan be a model for a power transfer in Russia?

Watch video 03:47 Share Kazakhstan activists call for free elections Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/3K5zV Activists call for free elections

Opposition arrests

Throughout the day, police detained some 500 people in Almaty and Nur-Sultan — the capital city recently renamed after Nazarbayev — as they protested for voters to boycott what they see as a fixed election.

Deputy Interior Minister Marat Kozhayev said the arrests were necessary because "radical elements" had held "unsanctioned" rallies.

Tokayev pledged his administration would be "building up a dialogue with all those who support the government and those who are against the government."

Nazarbayev was Kazakhstan's president from 1991 to 2019

In the weeks leading up to the vote, police raided the homes of opposition figures and courts sentenced anti-government protesters to short prison stays.

No vote in the Central Asian country has yet been recognized as fully democratic by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which sent more than 300 observers to monitor Sunday's election.

Kazakhstan is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), a free trade bloc that also includes Russia and Belarus.

amp/cmk (AFP, Reuters)

Every evening, DW sends out a selection of the day's news and features. Sign up here. </s> REUTERS/Mariya Gordeyeva | Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who was elected president on Sunday, walks out of a voting booth at a polling station in Kazakhstan's capital Nur-Sultan.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the hand-picked successor of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, has won Kazakhstan's presidential election with over 70% of the vote, electoral authorities said on Monday after a vote day marred by protests.

The victory of Tokayev, a career diplomat, was never in doubt after he received the blessing of Nazarbayev, who led the Central Asian nation for the last three decades.

Kazakhstan's Central Election Commission said Tokayev received 70.6 percent of the vote, citing the preliminary results of Sunday's vote.

But the day was marked by the biggest protests the Muslim-majority country has seen in three years, as demonstrators urged a "boycott" of what they said was a fixed election.

The build-up to the vote saw an intensifying crackdown on the opposition with courts sentencing protesters to short stays in jail and police raiding activists' homes.

The interior ministry said around 500 people were arrested on Sunday, with deputy minister Marat Kozhayev blaming "radical elements" for holding "unsanctioned" rallies.

Two AFP journalists were among those detained in the largest city, Almaty, where police broke up a protest involving several hundred people.

Protesters shouted "shame, shame, shame!" and "police come to the side of the people" as officers moved in on the crowd.

Aman Amanov, a protester in Almaty, asked an AFP journalist to "show this video all over the world" as the correspondent filmed him being ushered into a police van.

"You can see what is happening here. People are against this illegal election," he said. "You can see what the police are doing here!"

One AFP correspondent was taken to a police station before being released while another had video equipment confiscated.

Marzhan Aspandiyarova, an activist who visited police stations in Almaty Sunday evening said that protesters who had been held for over 12 hours had not been fed, while most had been denied access to their mobile phones.

"We have seen some first aid vehicles arrive at one district and colleagues say the same is happening in other districts. This suggests the condition of the detainees is worsening," Aspandiyarova told AFP.

Journalists for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and an independent local news site were also arrested, as was a representative of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee rights group and a local political analyst.

They were all later released.

Nazarbayev's announcement in March that he was stepping down from the presidency and naming Tokayev interim leader shocked Kazakhs who had lived under his rule since Soviet times.

But the 78-year-old, who turned the country of 18 million people into an energy powerhouse while governing with little tolerance for opposition, is still expected to call the shots from behind the scenes.

As he voted, Tokayev told reporters in the capital Nur-Sultan that Nazarbayev was "still in power in the capacity of chairman of the security council [...] and other capacities".

In Nur-Sultan, a 31-year-old woman who gave her first name Meiramgul, admitted that she only knew Tokayev and was still deciding whether or not she would vote.

"I don't think my vote will count for anything," she told AFP.

Turnout in the election was around 77 percent, the Central Election Commission said earlier in the day.

Four years ago Nazarbayev scored nearly 98 percent of a virtually uncontested vote where the official turnout was 95 percent.

No Kazakh vote has ever been recognised as fully democratic by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which sent more than 300 observers to monitor this election.

One of Tokayev's first acts as interim president was to propose that the capital Astana – which Nazarbayev transformed from a steppe town into a million-strong city – be renamed "Nur-Sultan" in honour of his mentor.

The change went ahead without public consultation.

There was only one candidate who was openly in opposition in Sunday's race.

Journalist Amirzhan Kosanov has criticised the government, but even these rebukes were vague, rather than directly attacking either Tokayev or Nazarbayev.

Human Rights Watch called the prospect of a genuine political transition "an illusion" and noted the persistence of rights abuses under Tokayev's interim presidency.

"Kazakh authorities routinely break up peaceful protests, forcibly round up participants... and sanction them with warnings, fines, and short-term imprisonment," the watchdog said. </s> NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan: The hand-picked successor of Kazakhstan’s longtime ruler has won a sweeping victory in a presidential election, authorities said yesterday, after a voting day marred by protests and arrests.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took 70.8 per cent of the vote in Sunday’s election, the Central Election Commission said, with his nearest rival, opposition candidate Amirzhan Kosanov, taking 16.2 per cent.

Tokayev’s victory was never in doubt after he received the blessing of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, who led the Central Asian nation for three decades before his shock resignation in March.

But the vote was marked by the biggest protests the Muslim-majority country has seen in at least three years, as demonstrators urged a boycott of what they said was a fixed election.

The interior ministry said about 500 people were arrested, with deputy minister Marat Kozhayev blaming ‘radical elements’ for holding ‘unsanctioned’ rallies.

Activists denounced the arrests and there were claims of ballot stuffing, but Tokayev insisted the election had been ‘a competition’.

“This shows that our level of political culture has seriously increased. There is much work ahead,” he said in comments broadcast on state television.

Authorities said they would investigate all allegations of vote violations. No vote in Kazakhstan has ever been recognised as fully democratic by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which sent more than 300 observers to monitor this election.

Tokayev’s opponents were quick to congratulate him on victory, including second-place finisher Kosanov, a journalist who positioned himself as the ballot’s sole opposition candidate.

“This political transition will take place with the participation of the people,” Kosanov said, criticising ‘foreign-based’ opposition figures who had encouraged voters to boycott the poll.

“People are ready for an equal dialogue with authorities,” he said.

Kosanov had previously said that if the count was fair the result would go to a second round. Toleutay Rakhimbekov, a career government official who ran on a rural issues campaign for the Aul (Village) party, said the result was “proof of the population of Kazakhstan’s trust and confidence in (Tokayev’s) rule.”

Third place was claimed by Daniya Yespayeva, the first woman candidate in a Kazakh presidential election, who scored 5.2 percent of the ballot according to the CEC.

Sunday’s protests took place in the capital Nur-Sultan, renamed after Nazarbayev following his resignation, and largest city Almaty. Several hundred rallied in Almaty before police moved in to detain protesters.

Journalists, including two from AFP and reporters for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, were among those detained in Almaty but were later released. About 50 more people were detained as they attempted to gather again in the central Almaty square where Sunday’s protests took place.

Marzhan Aspandiyarova, a civic activist who visited police stations in Almaty on Sunday and Monday, said that snap trials were underway to convict and sentence the protesters.

“Relatives are trying to get more information but it is difficult because the detained had their telephones confiscated.”

Nazarbayev’s announcement in March that he was stepping down from the presidency and naming Tokayev interim leader shocked Kazakhs who had lived under his rule since Soviet times.

But the 78-year-old, who turned the country of 18 million people into an energy powerhouse while governing with little tolerance for opposition, is still expected to call the shots from behind the scenes. — AFP </s> Police detained hundreds of people in Kazakhstan amid unauthorized protests of a presidential election Sunday, that opponents alleged was a fake exercise in democracy. Officers, some in riot gear with shields and helmets, broke up the demonstrations in the capital, Nur-Sultan, and in Almaty, the Central Asian country’s main commercial city. Some 500 protesters were taken to police stations, a government official said.

Three police officers were injured in the clashes, Deputy Interior Minister Marat Kozhayev said. There were no immediate reports of charges following the arrests.

The snap election was called after the unexpected March resignation of President Nursultan Nazarbayev, 78, who had led the country since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Many people assumed Nazarbayev would run for re-election during a regularly scheduled presidential vote next year.

The protesters alleged the election to choose his successor would not be free or fair, and had called for a voter boycott.

Nazarbayev loyalist Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the upper house speaker who became acting president when Nazarbayev stepped down, was expected to win easily.

Seven candidates were on the ballot, including a genuine opposition figure for the first time since 2005.

The opposition candidate, Amirzhan Kossanov, said he had no complaints about possible campaign violations before Sunday’s contest.

“But the most important result, the peak of the election political process, is counting of the votes,” Kossanov said. The national elections commission reported that about 77% of the electorate turned out to vote. Previous presidential elections had reported turnouts of more than 90%.

Kazakhstan recently has experienced rising opposition sentiment. Previous anti-government rallies took place in the spring to protest the early election, which opponents saw as an orchestrated handover of power.

One of the most prosperous former Soviet republics, large Kazakhstan stands at a crossroads between neighbors China and Russia. </s> “Presidential elections took place in the Republic of Kazakhstan on 9 June 2019 with Kassym-Jomart Tokayev voted into his first term as President. According to the preliminary findings of the internationally-recognised OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission, the election offered an important moment for potential political reforms, but it was tarnished by clear violations of fundamental freedoms as well as pressure on critical voices. There were widespread detentions of peaceful protesters on election day” reads the text of the European External Action Service (EEAS) spokesperson statement.

“Overall, the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission recognised that elections were administered efficiently by the Central Electoral Commission, but significant irregularities were observed across the country, including cases of ballot box stuffing, group voting and series of identical signatures on voter lists. The count was also negatively assessed in more than half of observations.

“In the light of the shortcomings reported by the OSCE/ODIHR Mission, we expect Kazakhstan to address these violations, as well as the controlled legal and political electoral framework, as they run counter to the country’s OSCE commitments and international obligations. In the framework of our Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Kazakhstan, the European Union stands ready to further support reforms to strengthen the promotion and protection of fundamental freedoms and human rights, the respect for democratic principles, the rule of law and good governance.”

“We look forward to working with the new President in this regard, as well as to advance EU-Kazakhstan relations more broadly.” </s> MOSCOW (AP) — Police detained about 500 people amid unauthorized protests in Kazakhstan of the presidential election that opponents alleged was a fake exercise in democracy.

Officers, some in riot gear with shields and helmets, broke up the demonstrations in Nur-Sultan, the capital, and Almaty, the country's main commercial city.

Deputy Interior Minister Marat Kozhayev said three police were injured in the clashes and some 500 demonstrators were taken to police stations. There were no immediate reports on whether charges were being filed.

The protesters were calling for a voter boycott of the snap election, which they alleged was staged to put in office a politician loyal to the former longtime president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, who resigned in March.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the upper house speaker who became acting president when Nazarbayev stepped down, is expected to win Sunday's contest easily.

Seven candidates were on the ballot, including a genuine opposition figure for the first time since independence. The national elections commission reported the election's turnout was about 77 percent of the electorate.

The resignation of the 78-year-old Nazarbayev, who had led Kazakhstan since it separated from the Soviet Union to become an independent country in 1991, came as a surprise to many who expected him to run for re-election next year.

The opposition candidate, Amirzhan Kossanov, said Sunday he had no complaints about violations during the campaign.

"But the most important result, the peak of the election political process, is counting of the votes," Kossanov said.

Kazakhstan has experienced rising opposition sentiment recently. Anti-government rallies were held in the spring to protest what opponents saw as an orchestrated handover of power and to call for a boycott of the early presidential vote.

One of the most prosperous former Soviet republics, Kazakhstan stands at a crossroads between neighbors China and Russia.

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> New Kazakh president sworn in after longtime leader resigns

MOSCOW (AP) — Kazakhstan has sworn in Kassym-Jomart Tokayev as interim president a day after longtime leader Nursultan Nazarbayev resigned.

Tokayev, a career diplomat who had been senate speaker, can serve the remainder of Nazarbayev's term ahead of scheduled elections next year.

Nazarbayev surprised many by announcing in a televised address Tuesday that he would step down after nearly 30 years, making Tokayev only the second president in the country's independent history.

Nazarbayev attended Tokayev's inauguration Wednesday, entering to lengthy applause from assembled dignitaries before taking a seat on a podium above and behind the lectern where Tokayev gave an address.

Nazarbayev, whom Tokayev praised as "an outstanding reformer," will remain influential as chairman of the security council and head of the ruling party.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is elected as the next president of Kazakhstan. The election was marred by the arrests of more than 500 protesters and was not declared to be fully democratic by OSCE observers.