ASTANA, March 19. /TASS/. The first foreign polling stations opened on Sunday in Japan and South Korea for voting in the extraordinary elections of deputies to the Majilis, the lower house of Kazakhstan’s parliament. This was reported by the press service of the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“All polling stations abroad are organized on the territories of the diplomatic missions of Kazakhstan. The very first to have the opportunity to vote are Kazakhstanis in the (Republic of) Korea and Japan. Polling stations in Seoul and Tokyo were the first to open for voting at 07:00 local time,” – the message says.
According to the agency, information on the voting process at all polling stations abroad will be issued regularly.
There are more than 12 million voters in Kazakhstan. More than 10,000 polling stations will be opened on the territory of the republic. Another 77 sites will open in 62 countries, including five in Russia – in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan, Kazan and Omsk.
Voting is held from 07:00 to 20:00 local time, in some cases, local election commissions may extend the opening hours of polling stations.
All seven parties registered in Kazakhstan take part in the parliamentary elections. Early elections to the lower house of parliament are organized according to a mixed electoral system: 70% of deputies are elected on party lists, 30% – in single-mandate constituencies. Elections are considered valid if there is any voter turnout.
