TURKPA Election Observation Mission composed of the parliamentarians from Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and Türkiye, as well as the representatives of the TURKPA Secretariat will conduct a short-term monitoring of the early parliamentary elections (elections of members of the Mazhilis – the Lower Chamber) to be held in the Republic of Kazakhstan on 19 March 2023.

Within its observation program, the Mission is expected to hold meetings with officials, and representatives of political parties contesting the elections.

On the election day, the Mission will visit polling stations in Astana and Almaty to monitor the voting process on the ground. On 20 March, the Mission will hold a press conference on preliminary outcomes of its observation.

The early parliamentary elections in Kazakhstan takes place against the backdrop of legislative reforms. Amendments to the Constitution as a result of the nationwide referendum of 5 June 2022 related inter alia to the transition to a mixed electoral system to elect members of the Mazhilis of the Parliament. Following the referendum, relevant amendments related to the election system, organization and conduct of elections of members of the Mazhilis were made to the electoral legislation. According to the recent amendments, 69 of 98 members of the Mazhilis shall be elected by the system of proportional representation in the territory of a single nationwide constituency on the basis of party lists from political parties, while 29 members of the Mazhilis through single-mandate territorial constituencies.