A Meeting of the Central Referendum Commission of 

the Republic of Kazakhstan Was Held on the Results of the National Referendum

On March 17, 2026, under the chairmanship of Nurlan Abdirov, a meeting of the Central Referendum Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan was held to review the results of the national referendum.

The meeting, which was held via videoconference, was attended by chairpersons and members of the territorial commissions of the regions, as well as the cities of Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent. The meeting was broadcast live with sign language interpretation via the Commission’s official website and the YouTube platform.

Opening the meeting, Nurlan Abdirov noted that, in accordance with the powers defined by Articles 21 and 31 of the Constitutional Law “On the Republican Referendum,” the Central Referendum Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan summarizes the overall results of the referendum across the country and ensures that an official statement is communicated to the mass media.

The territorial commissions of the regions, as well as the cities of Astana, Almaty and Shymkent, finalized the results of the referendum within their respective administrative-territorial units. All territorial commissions submitted to the Central Referendum Commission the original protocols on the results of voting.

On the basis of the protocols submitted, the Central Referendum Commission finalized the results of the nationwide vote.

The total number of citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan entitled to participate in the referendum amounted to 12,482,613. At the same time, 9,127,192 citizens took part in the voting, which constitutes 73.12% of the number of citizens entitled to participate in the referendum.

Of these, the number of citizens who voted in favor of the decision on the adoption of the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the draft of which was published in the mass media on February 12, 2026, amounted to 7,954,667, or 87.15% of those who took part in the voting across all regions of the country. At the same time, the number of citizens who did not support the question submitted to the referendum amounted to 898,099.

It was noted separately that the number of ballots in which both answer options were selected amounted to 127,868. Such ballots are considered valid; however, they are not taken into account in the vote count. At the same time, the number of ballots of an unestablished form, as well as ballots for which it is impossible to determine the will of the voters and which were declared invalid, amounted to 146,558.

Further, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitutional Law “On the Republican Referendum,” a referendum is considered valid if more than half of the citizens entitled to participate in the referendum took part in the voting.

A decision on the adoption of the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan submitted to the national referendum shall be considered adopted if it is supported by more than half of the citizens who took part in the voting, in no fewer than two-thirds of the regions, cities of republican significance, and the capital.

According to the results of the referendum, in all regions the majority of citizens supported the new Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Thus, the new Constitution shall be considered adopted.

The results of the referendum were finalized at a meeting of the Central Referendum Commission, recorded in a protocol, and approved by the relevant resolution.

At the same time, in accordance with the legislation on the national referendum, the official statement of the Central Referendum Commission on the results of voting is subject to publication in the mass media no later than seven days from the date of the referendum. The Chairman of the Central Referendum Commission instructed the Commission’s staff to publish this statement in the mass media on the same day.

Nurlan Abdirov noted that, according to the assessment of international observers, the referendum was conducted in accordance with national legislation and the international obligations of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The observers also emphasized the open and broad discussion of the draft new Constitution, the high level of public interest in the proposed reforms, and confidence in the process of expressing the people’s will.

On voting day, more than 45,000 representatives of 256 accredited public associations and non-governmental organizations, as well as 1,817 representatives of the mass media of the Republic of Kazakhstan, conducted observation at polling stations.

In addition, as noted earlier, 359 international observers from 38 foreign countries and 11 international organizations, as well as 206 representatives of foreign media, monitored the conduct of the referendum.

Overall, all conditions provided for by law were created to ensure the free expression of the will of citizens, as well as the exercise of the electoral rights of persons with disabilities.

46,624 citizens with disabilities requiring special voting conditions (persons with visual, hearing and mobility impairments) took part in the national referendum.

High participation was also noted among first-time voters who had reached the age of 18. Their number amounted to 137,093.

A total of 247 territorial commissions and 10,388 precinct commissions were involved in the preparation and conduct of the referendum.

In closing the meeting, the Chairman of the Commission noted the conscientious work of more than 70,000 members of commissions at all levels, who fulfilled the responsible tasks assigned to them.

He expressed his gratitude to central government bodies, including the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, and Culture and Information, for their assistance in the preparation and conduct of the national referendum.

Special mention was also made of the work of local executive bodies, which ensured equal and favorable conditions for citizens to participate in the voting.

The Chairman also expressed his appreciation to international observers, accredited public associations and organizations, as well as representatives of domestic and foreign media, for their contribution to ensuring the openness and transparency of the electoral campaign.