Kazakhstan has completed the registration of candidates running to be the president of the republic. 27 persons, 25 of them self-nominated, have announced their intention to compete for the presidency in the upcoming elections.
According to the CEC secretary Bakhyt Meldeshov, candidates will have to pass an exam in the state language by March 18.
The deadline for confirmation of participation is March 25, 2015, BelTA news agency reports.
The editor-in-chief of the Mir Yevrazii magazine, Eduard Poletayev, told Vestnik Kavkaza that he believes that "the incumbent president has no real competition, it is clear." "We are talking about the fight for second and third place, which will demonstrate some potential politicians in the future. It is unlikely that the candidates who take second or third place will rack up a serious number of votes. This will be one and half percent or two, no more. So there won't be a big difference in votes between the candidate who takes second place, and the third or fourth, in my opinion," he expects.
According to expert, now it is difficult to talk about the electoral prospects of one candidate or another, because the candidates have not collected the necessary number of signatures yet. "But there are people who have some potential. Firstly, there is Mels Eleusizov, a participant in two previous campaigns, an environmentalist. Also there is the President of the Trade Union Federation, Abelgazy Kusainov. He is an unexpected figure for these elections, but he has the potential to be a sufficiently powerful official, he has led the Karaganda region once and is also capable of taking some of the votes. Zharylkap Kalybai, editor-in-chief of the local Kazakh-language magazine Anyz Adam - all its readers also theoretically can be his supporters," the analyst said."But in my opinion these people are unlikely to compete with the incumbent president," Eduard Poletaev concluded.According to the director of the Alternativa Center for Actual Studies, Andrei Chebotarev, two candidates will be capable of competing with the incumbent president. "This is the candidate of the Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan, Turgun Syzdykov, and the head of the Federation of Trade Unions of Kazakhstan, Abelgazy Kusainov. Why? Because both candidates adhere to social subjects. But since neither have serious potential, the fight won't be serious," he said.
According to expert, now it is difficult to talk about the electoral prospects of one candidate or another, because the candidates have not collected the necessary number of signatures yet. "But there are people who have some potential. Firstly, there is Mels Eleusizov, a participant in two previous campaigns, an environmentalist. Also there is the President of the Trade Union Federation, Abelgazy Kusainov. He is an unexpected figure for these elections, but he has the potential to be a sufficiently powerful official, he has led the Karaganda region once and is also capable of taking some of the votes. Zharylkap Kalybai, editor-in-chief of the local Kazakh-language magazine Anyz Adam - all its readers also theoretically can be his supporters," the analyst said.
"But in my opinion these people are unlikely to compete with the incumbent president," Eduard Poletaev concluded.
According to the director of the Alternativa Center for Actual Studies, Andrei Chebotarev, two candidates will be capable of competing with the incumbent president. "This is the candidate of the Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan, Turgun Syzdykov, and the head of the Federation of Trade Unions of Kazakhstan, Abelgazy Kusainov. Why? Because both candidates adhere to social subjects. But since neither have serious potential, the fight won't be serious," he said.
