Kazakhs vote to elect their first new ruler in 3 decades

Bloomberg

Kazakhs are voting in presidential elections that were called after longtime ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev stepped down following three decades in power.
Seven candidates are competing to become only the second president of central Asia’s largest energy producer since it gained independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991. Polling, which began on Sunday and was expected to close at 8 pm on Sunday, saw a turnout of 51.8 percent as of 2 pm in the capital Nur-Sultan, according to the Kazakh central election commission’s website. Results must be counted within 12 hours of the end of voting, according to the website.
Nazarbayev, ruler of Kazakhstan since 1989, began a long-expected transfer of power in March when he resigned the presidency in favour of Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who was head of the senate and next in line under the constitution.
Tokayev, 66, called early elections in April “to remove any uncertainty” about the handover, and he’s campaigned on a pledge to continue with Nazarbayev’s policies.
The managed succession prompted a rare surge in protests on Sunday. Police detained about 100 protesters in Nur-Sultan and Almaty, Interfax reported, citing Marat Kozhayev, first deputy minister for internal affairs. A spokeswoman at the Nur-Sultan internal affairs department declined to make an immediate comment, while no one was available for comment in Almaty.
The 78-year-old Nazarbayev, whom the Kazakh parliament declared leader-for-life in this nation of 18 million people that’s the size of western Europe, retains key powers as head of the national security council.
He also leads the ruling Nur Otan party, which has an overwhelming majority in parliament. His daughter Dariga became head of the senate in place of Tokayev.
Shortly before he stepped down, Nazarbayev ordered billions of dollars in extra spending after acknowledging public discontent with “flat-lining” incomes. He also replaced the cabinet and the central bank chief, accusing ministers of failing to implement programmes effectively to improve living standards hit by a slide in the currency when oil prices tumbled in 2015.