Kazakhstan Local Politics - The Times Of Central Asia

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Akorda

Erlan Karin’s Appointment Links Reform and National Identity

When President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev put forward Erlan Karin for vice president on August 31, he called him “a genuine patriot” with long experience in government. He also stressed Karin’s part in implementing major reforms, his grasp of long-term state strategy and his understanding of Kazakhstan’s prospects for socioeconomic development. Karin has spent seven years in senior posts under Tokayev. He also has a sustained interest in a question that runs through the president’s agenda — how Kazakhstan can modernize while remaining connected to its own history and national identity. Tokayev proposed creating the vice presidency in January as an institution that would “organically complete” a political architecture built over several years. The office would stabilize governance and clarify the hierarchy of power. The presidency, he insisted, would remain “the central pillar of the state system.” Under the new Constitution, the vice president acts on the president’s instructions and represents his position in dealings with the Kurultai, the government and other state bodies. Tokayev has presented political and economic reform as parts of the same modernization program. Opening the first session of the Kurultai, he said the new system should make public institutions more effective and open the way to prosperity. He then described structural economic reforms aimed at sustained growth in citizens’ welfare, including new industries, jobs and modern infrastructure. Karin already knows the institutions with which he will work. His senior positions since 2019 have included presidential adviser, assistant to the president, state secretary, state counselor and first deputy head of the Presidential Administration. In October 2025, Tokayev appointed him to lead the working group on parliamentary reform. Karin later became deputy chair of the Constitutional Commission, giving him experience with the reforms now taking effect. Before the official titles accumulated, Karin taught history and geography at a school in Aktobe. The subject stayed with him. In 2013, he published Balbaltas: From Orkhon to the Caspian, a study of Turkic stone monuments across the steppe. A decade later, he co-authored a catalogue of historical maps of Kazakhstan from the 17th to the early 20th centuries. In a 2023 essay on national identity, Karin connected those interests to state-building. Nation-building, he argued, required state institutions and national identity to develop together. He traced Kazakh statehood through the Golden Horde and the Kazakh Khanate, while describing modern Kazakhstan as a multiethnic and multireligious country. Patriotism, in his account, meant attachment and service to the country, not nationalism or xenophobia. He was most persuasive when he left the abstractions behind. His examples concerned what children encounter in museums and at historical sites, how they learn the country’s history, how the Kazakh language is used and how Kazakhstan appears in books and films. This was national identity as part of daily life rather than an official slogan. Tokayev drew the same connection when he explained why the new legislature was given the historical name Kurultai. Recalling the gatherings at Talas and Ordabasy, he said the choice did not signal nostalgia. It joined Kazakhstan’s...

Government

Kazakhstan Vice President and Prime Minister Approved by Parliament

Kazakhstan has begun its first major round of senior appointments since the new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai, started work. On August 31, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev appointed Erlan Karin as vice president, retained Olzhas Bektenov as prime minister, and moved Aida Balayeva from the cabinet to the Security Council. Karin, who had previously served as first deputy head of the Presidential Administration, was the most significant appointment. The vice presidency in its current form was established under Kazakhstan’s 2026 constitutional reform. The post itself is not entirely new to the country: it existed during the first years of independence before being abolished in 1996. Under the new Constitution, at the president’s instruction, the vice president represents the president in interactions with the Kurultai, the government, and other state bodies. If presidential powers are terminated early, the vice president is first in line to assume them. The Kurultai must announce a presidential election within seven days, with the vote to be held within two months of that decision. Karin’s appointment therefore establishes, for the first time under the new system, who would assume presidential powers if the presidency became vacant before the end of a term. Karin is regarded as one of Tokayev’s closest advisers. He has worked alongside the president since 2019 and has served as presidential adviser, state secretary, state counselor, and first deputy head of the Presidential Administration. The creation of the vice presidency does not establish an independent political center alongside Tokayev. Instead, one of his most experienced political aides has taken the new constitutional office and become first in line to assume presidential powers if the office becomes vacant. Olzhas Bektenov, who has headed the government since February 2024, retained the post of prime minister. The Kurultai approved Bektenov’s candidacy by 137 votes, with seven abstentions and none opposed, after which Tokayev formally reappointed him. Meanwhile, Aida Balayeva left her posts as deputy prime minister and minister of culture and information to become deputy chair of the Security Council. Balayeva has long worked in Kazakhstan’s domestic policy establishment. She has served as an assistant to the president, deputy head of the Presidential Administration, minister of information and social development, and, since 2023, minister of culture and information. She now moves from the government to a body working directly under the president. The Kurultai replaced the Senate and Mazhilis, ending more than 30 years of bicameral parliament in Kazakhstan. All 145 members of the new chamber are elected through party lists. In the first election on August 23, the Adilet party won 71.17% of the vote and secured 110 of the 145 seats. Four other parties cleared the 5% threshold. With 110 seats, Adilet has enough deputies to approve presidential nominees requiring a simple majority without support from other parties. Under the new Constitution, however, the Kurultai has a formal role in senior appointments. Its consent is required for the appointment of both the prime minister and vice president, while most other government appointments follow consultations with the chamber....

Kurultai

Tokayev Frames Modernization as Kazakhstan’s Answer to a Turbulent World

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev used the opening of the first session of Kazakhstan’s new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai, on August 28 to link institutional renewal at home to Kazakhstan’s ability to adapt and sustain its international standing. In an international system becoming more chaotic and technologically disruptive, he argued, Kazakhstan must continue modernizing and strengthen the domestic foundations of its sovereignty and international role. Tokayev described global events as increasingly chaotic and difficult to predict. Major powers, he said, had largely stopped trusting one another, weakening the United Nations and creating a larger role for regional organizations and middle powers, including Kazakhstan. The emerging world order was dangerous and contradictory, but also technologically progressive and potentially transformative. The states most likely to adapt, he argued, would be those able to strengthen their sovereignty through economic strength, scientific capability, military and diplomatic capacity, and human development. He later said Kazakhstan had a clear plan of action and knew where it was going. That argument dates to the beginning of Tokayev’s presidency. At his inauguration in June 2019, he said the world had entered an era of rapid change shaped by trade wars, international tensions, failing security mechanisms and regional conflicts. The decisive question, he argued, would be which countries could adapt to new global realities and which would be left behind. Economic, social and political progress was Kazakhstan’s necessary response. Three months later, his first State of the Nation address set out the method. Political reform would proceed consistently, persistently and thoughtfully. Economic modernization could no longer succeed without changes in political and social life. Tokayev reiterated the formula of a strong president, an influential parliament and an accountable government, while introducing the concept of a Listening State able to respond to citizens. The language has evolved, but the central argument has remained consistent. In Tokayev’s account, reform is not a fixed package but an ongoing response to changing conditions. After proposing the transition to a single-chamber parliament in his September 2025 State of the Nation address, Tokayev presented it at the UN General Assembly as part of an effort to make the political system more effective, transparent and responsive. Following the 2026 constitutional referendum and the election of the first Kurultai, the proposal has now moved from constitutional design into legislative practice. Tokayev instructed deputies to bring legislation into line with the new Constitution and maintain and strengthen the legal scrutiny previously carried out by the Senate. He called for wider expert review and the use of the E-Parliament platform and artificial intelligence to improve lawmaking, while emphasizing that technology could not replace professional legal expertise. He also set out a legislative agenda covering digital assets, AI in secondary education, migration policy and the Golden Visa, energy-sector resilience and online platforms. He supported a proposed ban on social-media registration for children under 16. The Kurultai, in his formulation, must legislate more quickly without sacrificing legal rigor or public discussion. Tokayev has repeatedly treated political reform, economic policy, technology and social development...

Kazakhstan's Parliament

Kazakhstan’s Kurultai Has Begun Work, but the Intrigue Remains

Kazakhstan’s new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai, has held its first session and elected President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s nominee, Aibek Dadebay, as speaker. The choice of Dadebay, chairman of the recently created Adilet party, had been widely expected. Nevertheless, the arrangement differs markedly from the way political authority was organized under Kazakhstan’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev. Under Nazarbayev, the ruling party – first Otan and later Nur Otan – was headed by the president himself, while its day-to-day work was managed by a first deputy chairman. The party’s parliamentary leadership was separate, while the Senate speaker was formally elected from a candidate nominated by the president. Under Tokayev, the model changed. Tokayev left the ruling party in 2022, shortly after Nur Otan was renamed Amanat, and the Constitution was amended to bar the president from party membership. Amanat later merged into the newly created Adilet party in June 2026. That Tokayev-era model has now carried over into the Kurultai: the chairman of the ruling party entered the new parliament and was elected speaker. The arrangement places responsibility for the party and its parliamentary majority more clearly in the same hands. Tokayev also spoke about the legislative responsibilities of deputies at the opening of the first session. “Laws must be fair, understandable to people, and progressive – that is, aligned with modern requirements. Since laws affect the fate and lives of citizens, every norm and every clause must be carefully considered and comprehensively discussed,” he said. Tokayev added that artificial intelligence could be used “to improve the quality of legislative activity and minimize corruption risks,” while stressing that “advanced technologies cannot replace professional legal expertise.” Yerlan Karin, first deputy head of the Presidential Administration, noted that 24 deputies have previous parliamentary experience, arguing that this would help preserve “institutional memory” in the new legislature. Karin himself is among the senior officials whose next role remains uncertain. Tokayev must still submit nominees for vice president and prime minister to the Kurultai. The current government relinquished its powers before the new parliament, in accordance with the Constitution, and the president will appoint members of the government after consultations with deputies. He will also make an appointment to the new position of deputy chairman of the Security Council. According to political analyst Talgat Kaliyev, political observers are discussing several possible candidates for vice president. One scenario cited by Kaliyev would see current Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov take the role, with Astana akim Zhenis Kassymbek replacing him as prime minister. “Others say that the current prime minister will retain his position, while Yerlan Karin will take the post of vice president,” Kaliyev said, arguing that Karin’s close involvement in Kazakhstan’s political reforms strengthens his case. Kaliyev said other possible candidates could include former Senate speaker Maulen Ashimbayev or former Mazhilis head Yerlan Koshanov, who is “also being tipped for the post of chairman of Kazakhstan Halyk Kenesi.” The appointments are expected to follow before Tokayev delivers his traditional annual Address, which he said would take place after...

Sports Funding

Kazakhstan Olympic Delegations Capped After Spending Audit

Kazakhstan has limited the number of sports officials who can be included in official Olympic delegations. The new rules follow an audit of spending on the Tokyo Olympics, where Kazakhstan’s delegation included more support staff than athletes, and auditors found there were no uniform rules for determining how many accompanying personnel were actually necessary. Kazakhstan sent 95 athletes and 101 accompanying personnel to the Tokyo Games. They included 62 coaches, 20 medical staff, nine administrative staff, and other personnel. The Supreme Audit Chamber examined the delegation as part of its audit of spending on preparations for the Games. Auditors found that the country had no uniform rules governing the composition of sports delegations. The number of coaches, doctors, administrative staff and government officials was determined separately for each trip, making it difficult to assess whether travel expenses were justified. The Audit Chamber said the new rules were intended to prevent “extra” accompanying personnel from being included in delegations and reduce the risk of unjustified spending. Following the audit, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports introduced limits for different categories of accompanying personnel. The rules will apply to the Olympic, Paralympic, and Deaflympic Games, and other major international competitions. Officials face the tightest restrictions. At the Summer Olympics, Ministry of Tourism and Sports employees may account for no more than 3% of the number of athletes, while representatives of its Committee for Sports and Physical Culture are limited to 2%. For a team of 100 athletes, that would mean a maximum of three ministry employees and two committee representatives. The limits are substantially higher for personnel who work directly with athletes. At the Summer Olympics, coaches may number up to 86% of the athlete delegation, while doctors, massage therapists, and other medical staff may account for up to 28%. The significance of the new rules is less the precise size of each quota than the fact that Kazakhstan now has a benchmark for judging whether the number of people accompanying athletes – including government officials – is reasonable. Previously, delegation sizes were determined on a case-by-case basis. The new restrictions are part of a broader review of Kazakhstan’s spending on sports. Since the summer of 2025, public funds have been barred from being used to pay foreign athletes playing for Kazakhstani teams. As The Times of Central Asia previously reported, that measure, together with wider limits on professional sports spending, has saved more than $17 million, with the money redirected to youth sports. Ultimately, the audit of Kazakhstan’s Tokyo Olympic spending exposed less a problem with the size of one particular delegation than the absence of clear rules for forming such delegations. The new quotas give auditors a benchmark for the first time: delegations will now have to remain within defined limits.

Opinion

From Lenin to Kenesary: What Kazakhstan’s Renamed Streets Say About Power

In July 2026, a new constitutional law on Kazakhstan’s administrative-territorial structure came into force. It retained a layered process for changing place names: local authorities must consider residents’ views, while onomastic commissions review proposals before final decisions are made. The previous legal framework dated to 1993. Replacing it with a constitutional law did not dismantle the machinery of onomastic policy but consolidated the roles of public consultation, local government and official commissions. The law formalized a system built over three decades, during which thousands of streets were renamed but the country’s urban map changed at markedly different speeds. Kazakhstan’s experience is often described as a simple substitution of Lenin with Abai and communist terminology with the symbols of independence. The geography of renaming suggests something more precise: a centralized nation-building project whose reach depends on local demography and the political cost of opposition. Research documenting 6,832 cases across 37 cities between 1991 and 2019 shows the disparity. Five cities accounted for 72% of all recorded renamings: Shymkent had 1,767, Almaty 1,064, Astana 860, Aktobe 783, and Kyzylorda 470. Pavlodar recorded 34, Petropavl 28, Oskemen 23, and Rudny only two. Raw totals partly reflect city size and urban expansion, but the study’s statistical analysis identified both city status and ethnic composition as significant factors. Renaming occurred less frequently where the share of Slavic residents was higher, a pattern the author interpreted as evidence of greater state caution in ethnically mixed cities. The procedure helps explain why a national symbolic agenda produced such local variation. Proposals move through public consultation, local representative and executive bodies, and onomastic commissions. These stages do not guarantee that public preferences will determine the outcome, but they create points at which opposition can slow or redirect a proposal. Astana, extensively rebuilt after becoming the capital in 1997, could remake its urban identity quickly. Established industrial cities in the north and east moved more carefully. The contrast between what disappeared and what survived is equally revealing. Explicitly ideological names associated with Lenin, Marx, Engels, and the October Revolution became far less common, while Almaty retained streets named after Soviet scientists, writers, and figures connected to Kazakhstan’s development. The authorities did not treat every Soviet reference alike. They separated communist ideology from cultural and intellectual contribution, producing selective de-Sovietization rather than wholesale symbolic purification. Municipal practice further complicates a purely nationalist reading. Official data from Kyzylorda for 2025 lists 874 city streets: 497 named after individuals, 270 after localities and water features, and 107 carrying conventional names. This snapshot does not identify which streets were renamed, but it shows that the present naming system encompasses historical figures, local geography, and ordinary municipal conventions. In the expanding Arai-Shugyla neighborhood, seven previously unnamed streets received names drawn from localities and water features. Onomastic policy was therefore organizing new urban space as well as redistributing historical visibility. Naming new streets and replacing old ones use the same administrative machinery, although their political consequences are not always comparable. The politics became clearer when...