Experts discuss the role of Kurultai in shaping Kazakhstan’s new legislative governance architecture

An expert platform titled “The Kurultai as the Foundation of a New Legislative Governance Architecture” was held today in Almaty. The event was organized by the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies (KazISS) under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The event brought together representatives of government agencies, leading analytical centers, research institutions, universities, civil society organizations, and the expert community.

Opening the discussion, Zhandos Shaimardanov, Director of KazISS under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, stated that the establishment of the Kurultai marks a transition toward a new model of legislative governance based on the principles of openness, professionalism, and broad public participation. According to him, the first elections to the Kurultai will represent the practical implementation phase of Kazakhstan’s constitutional reform and will enable the full-scale launch of the renewed system of representative governance. This transition is expected to foster a new model of state-society interaction in which strong political institutions, evidence-based policy expertise, and meaningful citizen participation will play a central role.

Constitutional Transformation and Legislative Development

The first session focused on the constitutional transformation of the Kurultai, the expansion of its legislative powers, the enhancement of legislative drafting procedures, and the strengthening of expert and analytical support for the legislative process.

Danial Vaisov, Vice Minister of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan, presented the key directions of the constitutional transformation of legislative governance, outlining the powers of the Kurultai and its role within the country’s system of public administration.

According to the Vice Minister, the elections will be conducted under the revised electoral legislation. All 145 members of the Kurultai will be elected through proportional representation based on political party lists within a single nationwide constituency. This electoral model strengthens the role of political parties by shifting electoral competition toward policy platforms, political ideas, and cohesive teams that collectively bear responsibility for implementing public policy.

Aigul Sadvakassova, Director of the Institute for Philosophy, Political Science and Religious Studies, noted that the Kurultai has the potential to become a platform for reconciling political party values with national interests. In her view, contemporary state development requires continuous engagement among public authorities, political parties, the expert community, civil society, and regional stakeholders.

The expert emphasized that elections constitute the practical mechanism for implementing the constitutional principle that the people are the sole source of state power. Therefore, a high level of voter participation directly contributes to the public legitimacy of the new representative institution.

Urazgali Selteyev, Director of the Institute of Eurasian Integration, presented the findings of a nationwide survey on public electoral attitudes. According to the survey, 72.1 percent of respondents indicated their intention to participate in the upcoming elections to the Kurultai.

He noted that this high level of public engagement reflects strong societal interest in the new model of legislative governance and suggests that voter turnout may exceed that recorded during previous parliamentary elections. In his view, robust electoral participation will become an important source of democratic legitimacy for the future Kurultai and demonstrates citizens’ readiness to contribute to the continued development of Kazakhstan’s political system.

During the discussion, experts observed that recent sociological data illustrate the extent to which the current activities of political parties influence public opinion. Surveys conducted by KazISS under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Institute of Eurasian Integration indicate that the Ak Zhol and Respublica parties are competing for largely the same centre-right electorate, with comparable levels of public support.

At the same time, the Nationwide Social Democratic Party (OSDP) and the People’s Party of Kazakhstan (NPK), both seeking to represent the centre-left electorate, currently demonstrate similar approval ratings of 3.6 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively. Experts suggested that this may, in part, be attributable to the significant overlap in their social policy narratives, while the distinctions between the parties remain insufficiently pronounced for a broad segment of the electorate.

Sholpan Saimova, Head of the Center for Public Legislation and Public Administration at the Institute of Parliamentarism, emphasized the importance of scientific and analytical support throughout the legislative process.

Asem Bolatzhan, Head of Women in Tech Kazakhstan, devoted her remarks to gender representation within the Kurultai. She noted that the new legislative governance model and the modernization of the party system create additional opportunities for developing a professional leadership pipeline. At the same time, political parties should ensure equal opportunities for women to advance professionally, participate in party activities, serve in local representative bodies (maslikhats), public councils, and expert advisory platforms. According to the speaker, women’s representation in positions where legislative priorities are shaped will serve as an important indicator of the maturity of Kazakhstan’s evolving political system.

Public Participation and International Best Practices

The second session focused on international experience in parliamentary engagement with society, mechanisms for public participation in the activities of the Kurultai, the development of digital public services, and new institutional formats for sustained dialogue between the state and citizens. The session was moderated by Aidar Amrebayev, Head of the Center for Comparative Political Studies at the Institute for Philosophy, Political Science and Religious Studies.

Zhenisbek Tolen, Head of the Center for Educational Sciences and Social Development at the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan, presented an overview of international parliamentary engagement practices. Drawing on the experiences of Switzerland, Finland, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Korea, he demonstrated that public trust in legislative institutions is closely linked to citizens’ opportunities to participate in policy deliberation and public decision-making.

Azamat Baigaliev, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Kazakhstan Institute of Public Development, presented the findings of a study examining the formation of party lists for the Kurultai elections. He emphasized the importance of assessing not only candidates’ public visibility but also their professional competence and regional representation.

According to the expert, political parties were afforded nearly five months to prepare for the electoral campaign, enabling them to update their policy platforms, conduct internal candidate selection processes, and form teams aligned with the new requirements of the evolving political system. In his assessment, the current campaign demonstrates a high level of political competition and reflects the continued development of Kazakhstan’s multi-party system.

Alua Ibrayeva, Professor at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, underscored the need to institutionalize legal mechanisms for public participation in the activities of the Kurultai.

According to the expert, the modern Kurultai should function as a permanent platform for dialogue between the state and society, enabling citizens not only to submit proposals but also to understand how these proposals are reflected in public decision-making. The broader the opportunities for civic participation, the higher the level of public trust in representative institutions and the quality of legislation.

Kairzhan Abdykalykov, Chairman of the Civil Alliance of Almaty, noted that sustainable public dialogue cannot be achieved without regular consultations with citizens and the active involvement of non-governmental organizations, youth, academia, and regional representatives.

He emphasized that continuous public feedback, transparency in the consideration of legislative initiatives, and broad citizen participation in policymaking are essential conditions for strengthening public trust and advancing democratic institutions.

Aigerim Zhunussova, Senior Lecturer at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, presented the concept of a Digital Kurultai and the implementation of an e-Parliament model. She proposed establishing a unified digital legislative management system, ensuring transparency throughout every stage of the legislative process, expanding digital civic participation, and applying artificial intelligence technologies to analyze draft legislation and public proposals.

Conclusions

Summarizing the outcomes of the expert platform, participants concluded that the establishment of the Kurultai marks the practical implementation of Kazakhstan’s constitutional reform and opens a new stage in the development of representative governance.

According to the participants, the forthcoming elections will constitute an important milestone in the country’s consistent political modernization and the further consolidation of the governance model of “A Strong President - An Influential Kurultai - An Accountable Government.”

The experts further emphasized that the new system built upon competition among political party platforms, transparency of the legislative process, broad public participation, professional evidence-based expertise, and modern digital technologies will contribute to strengthening public trust in state institutions. Particular importance was attached to active voter participation, as high electoral turnout is regarded as the principal source of democratic legitimacy for the new representative institution and a reflection of society’s readiness to contribute to Kazakhstan’s continued political and institutional development.