Kazakhstan’s 2021 parliamentary elections: OSCE/ ODIHR observation mission final report

The 2021 parliamentary elections in Kazakhstan were efficiently prepared amid the challenges posed by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic but lacked genuine competition. Despite partially addressing a few previous ODIHR recommendations by way of recent legal revisions, the general legal framework is not yet conducive to holding elections in line with the OSCE commitments. Voting itself was generally organized efficiently, but election day proceedings lacked full transparency, and despite some scope for a greater number of opinions online, a subdued campaign further narrowed the opportunity for voters to make an informed choice.

These are some of the main conclusions from the final report on Kazakhstan‘s parliamentary elections of 10 January 2021, as published by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

The final report also states that further efforts are needed to align the electoral process with Kazakhstan’s OSCE commitments and standards for democratic elections. The document offers 25 recommendations to improve the conduct and transparency of the electoral process.

Recommendations

Key recommendations include:

• Revising law and public policy to ensure that citizens can exercise their civil and political rights without fear of retribution, punitive administrative actions or intimidation
• Simplifying procedures for the registration of political parties in order to respect and encourage pluralism and freedom of association
• Holding a broad, inclusive and timely consultation with a view to lifting the undue restrictions on fundamental freedoms such as peaceful assembly, expression and association
• Abstaining from restrictive implementation of the rules on the participation of citizen observers in the electoral process
• Bringing the legislation on right to freedom of expression, including related to defamation and the incitement to hatred, in strict conformity with the principles of legality, legitimacy and proportionality
• Adhering to uniform provisions and procedural safeguards during the counting and tabulation processes
• Enhancing transparency and accountability of election administration, including publishing separate election results

ODIHR deployed a Limited Election Observation Mission on 9 December 2020 to observe the parliamentary elections. All 57 participating States across the OSCE region have formally committed to following up promptly on ODIHR’s election assessments and recommendations.