Election date announced for Kurultai - the new Parliament of Kazakhstan

Tengrinews.kz — Elections for Kazakhstan's new unicameral Parliament, the Kurultai, have been set for August 23. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the corresponding decree today, citing Akorda.

"Under Subparagraph 3 of Article 46 and Paragraph 1 of Article 95 of the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan, I hereby decree:
Elections of deputies to the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan shall be held on August 23, 2026.The Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan shall organize the preparation and conduct of the elections of deputies to the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan.The Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as the akims of the capital, the regions, and the cities of republican significance, shall immediately take all necessary organizational, logistical, technical, and financial measures to ensure the conduct of the elections of deputies to the Kurultai of the Republic of Kazakhstan.This Decree shall enter into force on the date of its official publication," the decree reads," the text of the decree states.

On July 1, 2026, a new Constitution officially came into force in Kazakhstan, following its adoption in a national referendum on March 15. As a result, both chambers of Parliament—the Mazhilis and the Senate—ceased their operations today. As previously reported, elections to the new unicameral Parliament, the Kurultai, must be called within one month the President must announce elections and held within two months.
The President announced the parliamentary reform in his September 2025 Address to the People of Kazakhstan. It was stated then that the Parliament would become unicameral, and the Senate and Mazhilis would be abolished. A working group was established to draft additional constitutional amendments.
The proposed reforms ultimately became so extensive that President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev described them as, in effect, a new Constitution. Several months later, Kazakhstan announced a nationwide referendum in which citizens would vote for or against the new Constitution.
In the March 15 referendum, 87.15 percent of citizens who voted supported the amendments.