THE CEC INFORMS: CHAIRMEN OF POLITICAL PARTIES

 WILL TAKE PART IN THE FINAL TV DEBATES ON 19 AUGUST

The XII meeting of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan within the framework of the election campaign for the election of deputies of the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan, scheduled for August 23, 2026, was held today in Astana.

International observers, representatives of political parties, Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Culture and Information, and the media took part in its work. In addition, the chairmen and members of the territorial election commissions of the capital, regions and cities of republican significance, as well as deputy akims of the regions, were connected via videoconference.

In accordance with the agenda, the following issues were considered:

1. On the work carried out to establish a different start and end time for voting at individual polling stations, inform and notify citizens about the time and place of voting, as well as on the progress of consideration of appeals for the election of deputies of the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan, scheduled for August 23, 2026;

2. On the organization and conduct of pre-election television debates at the elections of deputies of the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan, scheduled for August 23, 2026;

3. On the accreditation of observers of foreign states and international organizations for the elections of deputies of the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan, scheduled for August 23, 2026.

Citizens of Kazakhstan can vote in the elections of deputies of the Kurultai on August 23, 2026 from 7:00 to 20:00 local time. At the same time, the Constitutional Law on Elections grants territorial election commissions the right to set a different time for the start and end of voting on the recommendation of the relevant akim and precinct election commissions. In this regard, during the CEC meeting, the heads of the territorial election commissions provided information on the number of polling stations where a different time for the start and end of voting was determined.

So, out of 10,423 polling stations in the country, a little more than 100 polling stations will start their work from 6:00. About 600 more polling stations established in military units, in inpatient medical institutions, in organizations with continuous production and shift-based work, and special institutions providing temporary isolation from society may declare voting over at any time if all citizens included in the list have voted. The relevant decisions of the territorial commissions on changing the start time of voting have been communicated to the voters.

In addition, the heads of the territorial election commissions reported on the work carried out in the regions to deliver individual election invitations to each voter, inform citizens about the upcoming elections, opportunities for online search of their polling station, the work of call centers, the issuance of absentee voting certificates and consideration of citizens' appeals.

Summing up the results of the review of the reports, Chairman of the Central Election Commission Nurlan Abdirov drew special attention to the importance of responsibly fulfilling the instructions for handing voters personal invitations to the elections.

"Since last week, members of the Central Election Commission and I have been conducting inspection trips around the country. To date, we have already visited 12 regions, got acquainted with the work of territorial and precinct election commissions, the logistical equipment of polling stations and the work on informing voters. I would like to note that when handing invitations to voters, it is imperative to provide them with information about absentee voting certificates. It is important to convey to every voter that they have the right and opportunity to vote, even if they are in another city or region. In addition, I ask you to pay close attention to creating conditions for the full participation of citizens with disabilities in the elections," - Nurlan Abdirov stressed.

The final TV debates of this election campaign were also discussed at a meeting of the Central Election Commission today. CEC member Lyazzat Suyindik noted that according to article 28 of the Constitutional Law on Elections, political parties that have nominated party lists of candidates for deputies of the Kurultai have the right to participate in pre-election debates organized by the Central Election Commission. 

"One of the key principles of the debate is equality of conditions for all participants. The order of their organization and conduct should not create advantages for any political party or its candidates. Debates are conducted in accordance with the requirements of the electoral legislation, as well as the Rules and Conditions for conducting pre-election debates, approved by the resolution of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan. In this regard, the necessary organizational work has been carried out to determine the venue, format and conditions of their holding. At the suggestion of the Ministry of Culture and Information, the "24KZ" TV channel of Khabar Agency JSC has been designated as the platform for organizing the final debate,"  - Lyazzat Suyindik informed.

It was noted that the choice of the "24KZ" TV channel was due to its technical and organizational capabilities, as well as its wide information coverage, which would ensure a full-fledged television broadcast of the debate and access to it for the widest possible range of voters.

According to the approved rules, the debates will be held in four rounds, each of which will have its own task and format. These are rounds such as "Party Presentation", "Questions to opponents", "Questions from the audience", and "Appeal to voters".

To date, all seven registered political parties have confirmed the participation of their chairmen in the final televised debates.

During the discussion of the third issue of the agenda, the high interest of the international community in the first historic elections to the Kurultai in Kazakhstan was noted. Mukhtar Yerman, Deputy Chairman of the Central Election Commission, informed that hundreds of international observers from Europe, Asia and the CIS are arriving in our country. Today, members of the Central Election Commission adopted a resolution on the accreditation of another 405 international observers representing seven foreign countries and nine international organizations.

"405 observers from seven foreign countries and nine international organizations have been submitted to the Central Election Commission from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for accreditation. Among them are 75 observers from the CIS Mission, 23 candidates from the IPA CIS, 208 observers from the OSCE/ODIHR Mission, 23 observers from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, 10 candidates from the Organization of Turkic States Mission, 22 people from the Mission of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States, 11 candidates from the SCO Mission, nine observers from the CICA, seven people from the Islamic Organization for Food Security, as well as 17 candidates from Lithuania, Turkiye, Georgia, North Macedonia, Estonia, the Netherlands, and Tajikistan," - said Mukhtar Yerman.

It should be noted that the accreditation of international observers will continue until 18:00 on August 17. Data on observers will be updated as proposals become available. Thus, to date, 656 international observers have been accredited by the Central Election Commission for the elections of deputies of the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Following the meeting, the members of the Central Election Commission adopted relevant resolutions. The CEC members also answered questions from journalists during a traditional media briefing