Turan Research Center

On March 15, 2026, Kazakhs turned out in record numbers—73.12 percent, the highest for any national vote since 2019—to approve a sweeping new constitution with overwhelming support. Preliminary figures showed 87.15 percent in favor, with final tallies confirming nearly 90 percent. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayevsigned the document into law on March 17, with its entry into force set for July 1, 2026.

Officially framed as the culmination of the “New Kazakhstan” project launched after the government suppressed the January 2022 pro-democracy protests, the reform rewrites roughly 84–95 percent of the basic law. According to Tokayev (who recently penned a defense of the reforms in this publication) and his administration, these changes streamline governance, move away from a “super-presidential” model, and strengthen citizens’ rights amid global volatility.

Yet the underlying logic is familiar to observers of post-Soviet Eurasia. Tokayev, who assumed the presidency in 2019, has followed a well-trodden regional trajectory. Initially positioned as a contrast to Nursultan Nazarbayev’s long rule, he introduced symbolic reforms after the 2022 protests: term limits, modest parliamentary strengthening, and the rollback of the former president’s privileges. But the violent lessons of “Bloody January” (Qandy Qantar)—when unrest threatened regime survival—triggered a rapid recalibration toward centralized control.

Read the full article on The National Interest.

Aigerim Turgunbaeva is a Research Fellow at the Turan Research Center.