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Kurultai Election

Final Results Give Adilet 110 Seats in Kazakhstan’s Kurultai

Kazakhstan has announced the final results of the first election to its new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai. Adilet, a party created only a few months ago, won more than 71% of the vote. Four other parties cleared the 5% threshold, while two failed to enter parliament. According to the Central Election Commission, Adilet received 6,528,948 votes, or 71.17% of the vote. Auyl came second with 6.26%, followed by Respublica with 5.56%, Aq Zhol with 5.21%, and the Nationwide Social Democratic Party (OSDP) with 5.11%. The People’s Party of Kazakhstan received 3.11%, while the green Baytaq party won 1.07%. Another 2.51% of voters selected the “against all” option. The new Kurultai has 145 seats, with all deputies elected through party lists. Under the final allocation, Adilet receives 110 seats, Auyl 10, Respublica nine, and Aq Zhol and the OSDP eight each. A total of 9.35 million people voted, putting final turnout at 74.08%, compared with 54.19% in the 2023 parliamentary elections. The regional differences were substantial: official turnout reached 92.16% in the Turkestan region, but just 43.23% in Almaty. Low turnout in Kazakhstan's largest city is not new — Almaty also recorded the country's lowest figure in 2023. In its preliminary assessment, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights described the election as technically well prepared and said opening and voting largely followed established procedures. It also cited limited political pluralism, discrepancies between observed voter activity and official turnout figures, and procedural violations during the vote count. The election was the first held under Kazakhstan’s new constitutional system. The new Constitution was approved in a referendum on March 15. It was supported by 87.15% of those who voted, with turnout at 73.12%. The document entered into force on July 1, abolishing the previous Senate-Mazhilis structure and replacing it with the 145-seat Kurultai, elected entirely through party lists. Although Adilet itself is new, the party inherited much of the structure of the country’s former dominant party, Amanat. Adilet was established at a founding congress on May 7 and registered on June 1. It is led by Aibek Dadebay, a former head of the Presidential Administration. In June, Amanat – the country’s largest political party and the successor to the ruling party of the Nursultan Nazarbayev era – voted to merge into Adilet. The merger gave the new organization an extensive regional network and much of Amanat’s party apparatus. Pre-election polling had already shown Adilet with a commanding lead. In early August, a survey by the Institute of Eurasian Integration put its support at 65.1%. For the other parties, the main uncertainty was not who would win the election, but which of them would clear the 5% threshold. The People’s Party accepted the preliminary result. Baytaq initially took a different position, alleging violations and saying it would seek to establish the “real results.” However, on August 24, Baytaq leader Azamatkhan Amirtayev said he had no confirmed evidence that would give him grounds to question the voters’ choice, canceled a planned press conference,...

Nuclear Power

Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan Coordinate on Nuclear Plant Safety

Uzbekistan is building its first nuclear power plant and preparing a second, while Kazakhstan intends to build at least three. Central Asia’s two largest economies are entering nuclear power at almost the same time. Even before their first reactors come online, the two countries are beginning to coordinate on safety and environmental monitoring, including potential transboundary impacts. On August 21, representatives of the two countries met in Tashkent and agreed on the main areas of further cooperation, including a road map and follow-up steps. The meeting came four days after a new announcement by Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. On August 17, he said preparations were under way for a second nuclear power plant, although the country’s first nuclear complex in the Jizzakh region is only at the initial stage of construction. The location, capacity, timetable, and technology partner for the new plant have yet to be announced. Uzbekistan’s nuclear project has expanded considerably over the past two years. In 2024, Tashkent and Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom agreed to build a small nuclear power plant with six 55 MW RITM-200N reactors. The configuration was later revised to an integrated plant in the Forish district of the Jizzakh region, comprising two large VVER-1000 units and two small RITM-200N reactors. The complex will have a total capacity of about 2.1 GW. Construction formally began on June 4, 2026, when concrete was poured for the first reactor unit. A technical launch of the first small reactor is planned for late 2029, while the first large unit is expected to begin operating in 2033. The entire complex is expected to be operational by 2035. Official projections of annual generation range from about 15.4 billion to 17.2 billion kWh. Rapidly growing electricity demand is driving discussion of a second plant. Uzbekistan needs more generating capacity as industry and new urban projects grow and the population approaches 40 million. Natural gas remains the backbone of power generation, but the government is also expanding solar and wind energy. Nuclear power is intended to provide baseload electricity around the clock, regardless of weather conditions. Kazakhstan is the world’s largest uranium producer and has the world’s second-largest uranium reserves, but it currently has no operating commercial nuclear power reactors. In a nationwide referendum in October 2024, voters approved the construction of a nuclear power plant. The country’s first plant is planned near the village of Ulken on the shore of Lake Balkhash, with Rosatom selected to lead the international consortium for the project. A nuclear industry development strategy approved in April 2026 calls for Kazakhstan to have at least three nuclear power plants by 2050. It also covers nuclear science and workforce training, along with the management of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. China National Nuclear Corporation has been selected to build Kazakhstan’s second plant; in July 2025, Roman Sklyar, then the country’s first deputy prime minister, said China would also build the third. The April 2026 strategy is less specific, however, and lists small modular...

Data Center Valley

Can Kazakhstan Power Its AI Ambitions?

For now, it is only a vast construction site lost in the steppe, a few kilometers from Ekibastuz, a mining city in northern Kazakhstan. Cranes move behind fences in the shadow of a Soviet-era power station. It is hard to imagine that, from 2027, this site is supposed to become the first piece of a giant artificial intelligence campus. Known as Data Center Valley, the project is eventually expected to reach one gigawatt. At full capacity, it could consume as much as 8.8 terawatt-hours a year, Kazakh media Qyzyq estimated, around 7% of Kazakhstan’s current electricity generation. Development will be gradual, with an initial 50-megawatt facility scheduled to enter service in June 2027. U.S.-based Firebird.ai and state-controlled Kazakhtelecom are leading the industrial project. Yet the futuristic bet collides with a more prosaic reality. “Economic and industrial growth in Kazakhstan is currently outpacing the rate of commissioning and modernization of generating capacity,” the Ministry of Energy acknowledged in a response to The Times of Central Asia. In 2025, the gap between domestic generation and consumption reached 1.5 terawatt-hours, forcing the country to import electricity, mainly from Russia. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has acknowledged the scale of the challenge. At the National Kurultai in January, he said data centers consume electricity on a scale comparable to metallurgical plants and that Kazakhstan’s existing generation was “clearly insufficient” for its development plans. He called energy self-sufficiency a key state priority and ordered an expansion of generating capacity, including new coal-fired power. How, then, can Kazakhstan power a campus that could consume almost six times that shortfall? More strikingly, when the government prepared its 2026 electricity forecast, neither Data Center Valley nor any other AI or data-center project was included. The ministry says they will enter its calculations from 2027 - the same year the first facility is due to start operating. [caption id="attachment_54529" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] The mine of Bogatyr is expanding to increase production[/caption] From Coal to Algorithms In Ekibastuz, the answer comes down to one word: coal. “In essence, Kazakhstan is turning Ekibastuz coal into export digital revenue,” Kazakhtelecom chairman Bagdat Musin has said. Electricity generated locally would be converted into computing services sold internationally. No major named customer contract has been announced, although Firebird says it holds guaranteed service contracts with global players. Amazon and G42 have been named as companies entering the ecosystem, while Kazakhstan has also held talks with Microsoft and OpenAI. The landscape appears built for that ambition. Nearby lies Bogatyr, one of the world’s largest open-pit coal mines. From the observation deck, terraces of rock descend 300 meters into the earth. Excavators and haul trucks look like toys at the bottom. “Ekibastuz is a very smart choice: energy is abundant and cheap here, while proximity limits transmission losses between the power station and the consumer,” Yevgeny Masternak, CEO of mine operator Bogatyr Komir, told TCA. To keep pace with anticipated demand, the company plans to raise annual production from 42 million tonnes in 2024 to more than 56 million...

Dastan Satpayev

Dastan Satpayev Burnley Debut Marks First Step in English Football

One of Central Asia’s most promising young footballers, Dastan Satpayev, made his competitive debut in English football on August 23. The 18-year-old Kazakhstan international came off the bench for Burnley in an away match against West Bromwich Albion in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Satpayev came on in the 58th minute with Burnley trailing 2-1, but was unable to prevent his side falling to a 3-1 defeat. Why Satpayev Ended Up in the Championship For a region whose footballers have rarely moved directly into leading Western European leagues, Satpayev’s career is being closely watched. In July, the forward joined Chelsea for preseason and scored in one of the club’s friendly matches. Chelsea formally completed his transfer on August 14, signing him to a contract running until 2033. He then joined Burnley on loan for the 2026/27 season. Loans are routinely used by major English clubs to give young players first-team experience elsewhere while they remain under contract with their parent club. Satpayev has said the move will give him a chance to adapt to English football. The Championship is far from a youth or reserve league. Sometimes dubbed "the toughest league in Europe", its marathon 46-game season features 24 clubs, many of whom, including Burnley, have appeared in the Premier League. “I Just Need to Keep Working Hard” Ahead of his debut, Burnley’s official website published Satpayev’s first interview since joining the Lancashire club. “I think this loan is a good step for me. I can adapt here and see what it is like to play in England. Playing in the Championship will help me get used to English football,” the forward said. Satpayev also noted that the intensity of the English schedule, with its 46 league games, plus domestic cup fixtures, will help his development. “I just need to keep working hard, keep moving forward and keep working. It’s also good that there are so many games in the Championship and Premier League: for a footballer, it’s great when you have a match every three or four days. It helps you stay sharp all the time,” he said. His First Half-Hour On August 23, head coach Nicky Hayen selected him for the away match against West Bromwich Albion. The Kazakh forward came on with Burnley trailing 2-1, replacing Armando Broja in the 58th minute. The visitors were unable to turn the game around. West Brom scored a third goal from the penalty spot and won 3-1. After the match, Hayen did not single out the Kazakh player’s debut for assessment. Instead, the head coach expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the team as a whole, particularly after halftime. “The defeat was fully deserved. They had much more energy, and you could see that in the duels and the second balls. We played too slowly and were a long way from the level of last week,” Hayen said. Early reactions to Satpayev were broadly positive. British football blogger Josh Pearson, who regularly covers the Championship, suggested after...

Conflict Resolution

Kazakhstan Peace Talks: Basel Al-Haj Jassem on Syria and the South Caucasus

Basel Al-Haj Jassem, a Syrian political adviser and analyst, has worked on the Middle East, the Caucasus, Russia, and Central Asia for many years, with a particular focus on peace processes. He is the author of the Arabic-language book Kazakhstan and the Syrian Astana, which examines Kazakhstan’s role in the Astana Process on Syria. While Al-Haj Jassem was in Kazakhstan as an observer of the first elections to the country’s new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai, The Times of Central Asia spoke with him about Kazakhstan’s international standing and the country’s possible role as a mediator in the South Caucasus and the Middle East. He described the elections as well organized and “a new stage in the development of Kazakhstan’s political system,” although he added that “in a year it will already be possible to give a more concrete assessment of the Kurultai’s work.” TCA: You have known Kazakhstan for many years and have observed the country from different professional perspectives. In your view, how have Kazakhstan’s role and international standing changed over the past two decades? Al-Haj Jassem: I think the changes that have taken place in Kazakhstan over the past two decades go far beyond economic growth or the expansion of foreign relations. The country has gradually moved from being an important Central Asian state to one whose political and diplomatic presence extends beyond its immediate geographical surroundings. Several factors have contributed to this: its geographical position, balanced relations with Russia, China, the West, and the Islamic world, as well as its ability to avoid becoming rigidly aligned with opposing political blocs. But what I consider most important is that Kazakhstan has built a reputation as a state capable of maintaining dialogue with different parties, including those that are sometimes opposed to one another. TCA: One of your books is devoted to Kazakhstan and the Astana Process on Syria. That experience demonstrated Kazakhstan’s potential as a venue for negotiations. What further role could the country play in the Middle East? Al-Haj Jassem: The experience of the Astana Process on Syria was important because it showed that a state that is not itself a direct party to a conflict can provide space for dialogue that cannot be achieved elsewhere. Kazakhstan, of course, was not a party determining decisions on the Syrian issue, but it created a political and diplomatic environment that helped maintain channels of communication between participants who found it difficult to sit at the same table. I think this experience can be developed further, but it is not necessarily a matter of literally reproducing the Astana Process model. Today, the Middle East needs different forms of mediation, including quiet diplomacy, humanitarian initiatives, and support for dialogue between religious and cultural communities. Kazakhstan’s advantage is that it carries no colonial legacy in the region and is not part of traditional intra-Arab rivalries. At the same time, the country maintains good relations with various Arab and Islamic states. This gives Kazakhstan a certain freedom of action, particularly in situations where a settlement requires, above...

Kurultai Election

Reform and Moderate Conservatism: Reading Kazakhstan’s Kurultai Vote

Preliminary results have been announced in Kazakhstan’s election to its new unicameral parliament, the Kurultai. Notably, they differ little from the first exit poll released the previous day. The outcome itself was largely predictable: the newly created ruling Adilet party won by a wide margin, while two parties failed to clear the threshold for representation in the Kurultai. In recent years, Kazakhstan has gone through a series of major electoral campaigns that have, quite literally, revived voters’ interest in exercising their basic civic rights. Along the way, the campaigns have developed a tradition of sorts, combining Soviet-era methods of drawing people to polling stations with elements of the political spectacle more characteristic of Western countries, particularly the United States. [caption id="attachment_54573" align="aligncenter" width="1600"] Image: TCA[/caption] In Soviet times, voters were enticed to polling stations with scarce goods, from candy to sausage. On election day, food fairs appeared near polling stations in Almaty: people could cast their ballots and then eat traditional Kazakh dishes, drink hot tea with milk, and listen to music. Since elections in Kazakhstan are increasingly promoted as family occasions, where parents can pass an important civic experience on to the younger generation, activities were also organized for children near polling stations. Among other things, they could play asyq, a traditional game familiar to generations of Kazakhstanis. [caption id="attachment_54574" align="aligncenter" width="1600"] Image: TCA[/caption] As for the show-like elements, some voters arrived dressed as various characters, from Kazakh batyrs, or traditional warriors, to the American superhero Spider-Man. [caption id="attachment_54568" align="alignnone" width="300"] @Regional Communications Service[/caption] [caption id="attachment_54569" align="alignnone" width="300"] @Regional Communications Service[/caption] [caption id="attachment_54570" align="alignnone" width="300"] @Regional Communications Service[/caption] Public transportation was free for city residents that day, and during the first half of the day it was easy to tell which passengers had already voted and which had not: the latter persistently tried to pay their fares, while the former stopped them from doing so. All of this coincided with an unusually high turnout in Almaty – more than 43%. According to preliminary regional figures announced after polling stations closed, turnout in the city reached 43.23%, the lowest among Kazakhstan’s regions and cities of national significance but unusually high by Almaty standards. Political analyst Andrey Chebotarev noted that turnout at this level had not been recorded in Almaty since 2012, when Kazakhstan was still reeling from the bloody events in Zhanaozen. Chebotarev said the factors behind the current level of voter participation in Almaty would require further study. “Most likely, Almaty residents who are loyal to the authorities were primarily encouraged to vote by the political changes that began with the adoption of Kazakhstan’s new Constitution. Protest-minded residents apparently did not stay away either, expressing their dissatisfaction by voting ‘against all.’ But both groups were united by strong interest in the election campaign that has just ended,” the political analyst suggested. The author of this article exercised his civic right at 11 a.m., when the ballot box at his polling station was already almost one-third full. Election commission members...