2012 Kazakh legislative election

A parliamentary election was held in Kazakhstan on 15 January 2012.

According to the OSCE, the election "did not meet fundamental principles of democratic elections."

Background

The election marked the first time that the second-placed party would gain parliamentary seats irrespective of whether it cleared the 7% electoral threshold.

Parties

Seven parties ran in the election: Nur Otan, Democratic Party of Kazakhstan Ak Zhol, Kazakhstani Social Democratic Party Auyl, Democratic Party Adilet, Nationwide Social Democratic Party (OSDP), Party of Patriots of Kazakhstan and the Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan. The OSDP was the only party considered to be in opposition to long-time president Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Riots

Due to the 2011 Mangystau riots and the resulting state of emergency there, the election was not planned to be held in Zhanaozen. However, this decision was overturned on 10 January 2012.

Result

Reactions

The opposition has claimed widespread irregularities and fraud. The OSCE and U.S. Department of State did not recognise the election as democratic.

Miklos Haraszti, the head of the OSCE's long-term election-observation mission, criticized what he called a "tightly controlled campaign environment in which the electoral rights of the citizens were seriously limited." "There was limited public debate and the media, the mass media operates in an environment characterized by self-censorship and in which there is no room for editorial independence in the broadcast media." Haraszti said the "results of the election, including the presence of two parties apart from the state party, can be described as an orchestrated election."

However, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization lauded the election.