OSCE observers slam Kazakh leader’s 95% election win

President Nursultan Nazarbayev Monday extended his rule over Kazakhstan into a third decade with a crushing 95 percent victory in elections that observers said fell well short of democratic standards.

The Central Election Commission said the first official results showed the incumbent had won 95.5 percent of the vote on a mass turnout of 89.9 percent -- both figures beating Nazarbayev's performance in his last re-election in 2005.

The victory gives the 70-year-old -- who has ruled Kazakhstan since even before the collapse of the Soviet Union -- a third decade of power and keeps the question of who will one day succeed him on the backburner.

But international observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) immediately cast a shadow over his triumph by noting that the polls fell short of "genuine democratic" standards.

"Regrettably we have to conclude that this election could and should have been better. It showed the urgency of implementing the long-awaited reforms," said the long-term OSCE mission chief Daan Everts.

The group observed instances of ballot box stuffing and strong state pressure on institutions to ensure mandatory attendance at the polls.

The uncompetitive nature of the contest was underscored by a bizarre incident in which one of the three challengers -- environmentalist Mels Yeleusizov -- said he had "expressed my respect for the winner" by voting for Nazarbayev.

But the vote was backed by a group of observers from former Soviet republics and Nazarbayev received "heartfelt congratulations" from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev -- one of the first world leaders to recognize the poll.

Regrettably we have to conclude that this election could and should have been better. It showed the urgency of implementing the long-awaited reforms

OSCE mission chief Daan Everts

Boycotted by opposition

The snap election was boycotted by the main opposition and watched closely by Western embassies after social revolutions swept veteran leaders from power in other Muslim nations in the Arab world.

But a triumphant Nazarbayev told a meeting of adoring supporters that the margin of his victory proved his country was impregnable to the unrest now hitting other Muslim regions.

"Of course this is a sensation for Western states," Nazarbayev said to chants of "Nursultan! Kazakhstan!" from hundreds of flag-waving supporters.

"If the world sees bloodshed and ethnic discord, we are unified -- all the nationalities, peoples and religions of Kazakhstan," Nazarbayev said.

Opposition leaders argued that the three contenders had been placed in the field by the government to make the vote look fair.

"This only confirms that they were there for decoration," said unregistered Azat party co-leader Bulat Abilov.

The official turnout figure of 89.9 percent will come as a particular disappointment for opposition leaders who called a boycott the only form of protest left for those unhappy with Nazarbayev's regime.

"This regime has shown that it has learned nothing in the past 20 years," said Alga! (Forward!) party leader Vladimir Kozlov.

"We want members of the world community to start noticing things like this."

Kazakhstan has come under repeated fire for instituting effective one-party rule in which all political and economic decisions are made by Nazarbayev and his hand-picked ministers and assistants.

But this closed system has pursued a decade of business-friendly policies that have ensured 8.5 percent annual growth and a dramatic improvement in the lives of the 16.4 million people living across the vast country's steppes.

Nazarbayev's landslide re-election does nothing to answer the question asked by many investors in Kazakhstan -- who will eventually succeed him?

Nazarbayev has said he will rule for as long as his health and his people will allow. Some analysts say he could use his next five years in office to groom a pliant successor.

He has made stability his main motto in the predominantly Muslim nation, where he has overseen market reforms and more than $120 billion in foreign investment during his decades in power.

This regime has shown that it has learned nothing in the past 20 years

Vladimir Kozlov