Presidential Election, 3 April 2011

Following an official invitation from Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry, ODIHR deployed an election observation mission on 1 March to observe the 3 April early presidential election.

The mission was headed by Ambassador Daan Everts and consisted of 16 analysts and 28 long-term observers from 27 OSCE participating States, who were based in Astana and 13 regional centers.

For election day, the mission joined efforts with a delegation from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. In total, there were 380 short-term observers, including over 260 seconded by 43 OSCE participating States.

According to the mission's final report: "Needed reforms for holding genuine democratic elections still have to materialize as this election revealed shortcomings similar to those in previous elections. While the election was technically well-administered, the absence of opposition candidates and of a vibrant political discourse resulted in a non-competitive environment."