Kazakh senate to hold elections

The Kazakh upper chamber of parliament, the Senate, will have
elections today, Trend reports.

15 senators will be appointed by the president, 32 by elections. The
voting is legitimate with the participation of over 50% of deputies
from regions, Astana and Alma-Ata.

There are 3,284 electoral delegates and 39 registered candidates, the
Deputy Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission of Kazakhstan,
Vladimir Fo’os, said on Friday.

213 Maslakhits of various levels operate in Kazakhstan. 51 mandates
out of 3,335 Maslkahit mandates are available.

14 out of 39 candidates were introduced by Maslakhits, 25 are
independent. There have been no female candidates this year.

The average age of candidates is 54. The youngest one comes from the
Aktyubinskaya Region, Yerlan Bazekenov, aged 30, the oldest from
Alma-Ata, Yerbolat Sadvakasov, aged 66.

There have been no violations or complaints registered so far. 22
international observers are monitoring the process, 9 come from
political parties, 12 from public organizations, 15 are authorized by
candidates and 90 from media sources.