ODIHR opens observation mission for the early parliamentary elections in Kazakhstan

ASTANA, 10 July 2026 – The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today formally opened an election observation mission (EOM) for the 23 August early parliamentary elections in Kazakhstan, following an invitation from the national authorities and based on the findings of a pre-election needs assessment mission.

The mission is led by Ambassador Vincent Piket and consists of a core team of 12 experts based in Astana. Twenty-two long-term observers will be deployed throughout the country in multinational teams of two from 18 July. In addition, ODIHR will request the secondment of 300 short-term observers from OSCE participating States to follow election day proceedings. The core team of experts come from nine different OSCE participating States.

“This observation mission will assess all stages of the electoral process against OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections,” said Ambassador Piket. “With our long-term election observers, who will arrive in a week, and several hundred short-term observers, who will join us mid-August, we will observe and analyze the electoral process comprehensively, from preparatory stages to the election day.” 

The mission will closely monitor all aspects of the elections, such as voter registration, the campaign, including online and on social media platforms, the work of the election administration at the national, regional and local levels, election-related laws and regulations, institutional arrangements put in place by authorities to detect disinformation, media coverage, and the resolution of election-related disputes. In the course of its observation, the mission will meet with representatives of state authorities, political parties, civil society, the media and the international community.

Observers will also assess the implementation of prior ODIHR election recommendations. The ODIHR EOM will conduct qualitative and quantitative monitoring of media coverage of the election campaign, including on social networks.

On election day, observers will monitor the opening of polling stations, voting, the counting of ballots and the tabulation of results at all levels. For election day, the ODIHR EOM will join efforts with the delegations from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

An interim report will be published by ODIHR some two weeks prior to the elections, to update the public on the observation mission’s activities. The day after the elections, the mission’s initial findings and conclusions will be presented at a joint press conference. A final report with a comprehensive assessment and containing recommendations to help improve the process for the future will be published in the months following the elections.

ODIHR has previously observed 15 elections and 2 referendums in Kazakhstan, most recently the 2023 early parliamentary elections and the referendum in March of this year. Further information on ODIHR’s election observation activities in the country can be found here.

ODIHR carries out election observation across the OSCE region, on the invitation from the national authorities. Election observation missions assess the extent to which fundamental freedoms are respected in the campaign and if the elections are characterized by equality, universality, political pluralism, confidence, transparency and accountability. 

ODIHR’s mandate to observe elections comes from the OSCE commitments outlined in the 1990 OSCE Copenhagen Document, other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as national legislation. Since the Office’s establishment over 30 years ago, ODIHR has deployed more than 470 missions. 

The ODIHR election observation mission and the OSCE Programme Office in Astana operate separately and independently under their own mandates.

The Mission is firmly committed to transparency and openness in all aspects of its work and encourages media inquiries.

Media contacts:

For further information, please visit www.osce.org/odihr/elections/kazakhstan or contact Loredana Bertişan-Pop, Media Analyst, at + 7 771 772 8446, or at loredana.bertisan@odihr-kz.org

or

Thomas Rymer, ODIHR Spokesperson, at +48 609 522 266, or at thomas.rymer@odihr.pl.