President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has issued a decree to dismiss the parliament’s lower chamber, the Mazhilis, and announced snap parliamentary elections on March 19, QazMonitor reports citing Akorda’s press service.
In the statement released by the presidential office, President Tokayev thanked the deputies of the current convocation and noted their role in the reforms undertaken throughout the state.
The president also instructed the Central Election Commission (CEC) to appoint the dates for the election of the local representative bodies, the Maslikhats.
Due to the regulations introduced by the last Constitutional reform, 70% of the lower chamber deputies will be elected from party-lists and 30% from single-member districts. The elections of the local representative bodies in the regions and the cities of Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent will be held under the mixed 50-50 electoral system. The elections for districts and regional cities will be held only through a single-member district system.
The president outlined how the implemented reform will shape the lower chamber.
Another important innovation to ensure the inclusiveness of the electoral process was the legislative establishment of a 30% quota for women, youth, and people with special needs in the distribution of deputy mandates.
The regional commissions will be transferred to a professional basis while CEC with the general prosecutor's office will exercise control over the legality, transparency, and fairness of the forthcoming elections.
