Referendum Confirmed Valid: Most Eligible Voters Cast Ballots in Kazakhstan’s National Referendum
More than half of the eligible voters participated in the national referendum on the construction of a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan, reported the Central Election Commission (CEC) at an Oct. 6 press briefing.
“Overall, nationwide, as of 2 p.m., 6,399,425 citizens have received their ballots, which accounts for 51.77% out of the overall number of eligible voters,” said CEC member Sabila Mustafina.
“It should be noted that under paragraph 2 of Article 31 of the constitutional law on the national referendum, the referendum is considered valid if more than half of eligible voters participate,” she added. (Source:astanatimes)
The highest voter turnout was recorded in the Turkistan Region, with 67.38%, while the lowest turnout was in the city of Almaty, at 16.91%.
Significant participation rates were also noted in the East Kazakhstan Region (61.73%), the city of Shymkent (64.38%), the Kostanai Region (61.54%), the Karagandy Region (59.92%), and the Almaty Region (59.32%).
In the capital city of Astana, 45.19% of eligible voters participated in the referendum.
Voting is set to continue until 8 p.m. Among over 10,000 polling stations nationwide, 74 have been established in Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions abroad.
One hundred seventy-seven observers from 30 foreign countries and four international organizations—including the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA)—are monitoring the voting process.
