Trend European Desk Head Aynur Gasimova
Kazakh people will vote for the President on Sunday, April 3. Snap elections this year is a result of actual President Nursultan Nazarbayev's decision to decline the people's initiative to hold a referendum to prolong his presidential term till 2020.
The Central Election Commission has registered four presidential candidates out of 22. Among them is Nazarbayev, actual head of the government nominated by Nur Otan political party, as well as Zhambyl Ahmetbekov from the Communist party, Gani Kasimov, Senator, Leader of the Patriots Party and Mels Eleusizov who heads "Tabigat" Ecological Union.
However , the elections don't promise any political intrigues as the result is very much predictable. Nazarbayev, 70, is expected to win easily. He has been in power for over 20 years and is supported by about 90 percent of the population.
The figures speak for themselves. During the candidates' registration in the first phase of the presidential campaign, about 717,000 signatures have been collected in support of Nazarbayev, about 100,000 for Kasimov, about 98,000 for Eleusizov and only about 96,500 for Ahmetbekov.
Kazakh political analysts believe that there is no alternative for Nazarbayev at the moment. This is evident due to the international context of the president's activity. The country holds a strong position in the world's political arena. In 2010, Nazarbayev managed to gather the presidents and the heads of the governments of the OSCE member-states for the first time in 11 years.
Furthermore, Kazakhstan first headed this organization in the post-Soviet area. After the chairmanship in the OSCE, the country headed the Organization of Islamic Conference in 2011 and plans to hold a commemorative summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
No serious opposition is participating in the elections. Experts believe that the candidates' main reason to run for president is not political, but psychological one. Absence of a clear program and strategy of most of the candidates means their goal is not the presidency, but just the opportunity to make them known.
Taking into account the special features of Kazakhstan, it must be mentioned that political system there is associated with the name of one person, namely Nazarbayev. Kazakh people are not very experienced in having changes of political power, political uncertainty and instability. The name of Nazarbayev, first and the only president so far, is linked with the image of new and independent Kazakhstan. The country is well-known for its stable economic development, stability and ethnic tolerance, and naturally that Kazakh people are afraid to lose those achievements as the result of change of power.
Let's wait and see what the Kazakh people choice will be.