Kazakhstani citizens head to polls in U.S. for Qurultay elections
Kazakhstan’s Qurultay elections are being held at three polling stations in the United States on August 23, allowing Kazakhstani citizens living there to cast their ballots, Qazinform News Agency reports.
The polling stations at Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time.
Polling station No. 413 at the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Washington serves citizens from the southern and southeastern US states. Gaukhar Kudaybergenova, a Bolashak scholarship holder completing a research internship at Johns Hopkins University under the 500 Scientists program, was among those who cast their ballots.
“For me, as for many Kazakhstanis, today is a very important day. Elections for Kazakhstan’s new parliament are being held today. We must fulfill our civic duty, so I voted today because I believe Kazakhstan has a prosperous future,” she said.
Damir Altynbayev called the vote a historic event for modern Kazakhstan. Bolashak scholarship holder Laura Daurindayeva expressed hope that the elections would mark a new stage in the country’s development, while Meruyert Zhanzakova, a student at Johns Hopkins University through the Bolashak program, said it was an important day for every citizen of Kazakhstan to make a choice for the country’s future, wherever they may be.
Kazakhstani citizens traditionally come to vote with their families, and Asylkhan Suyundikov’s family was no exception.
Polling station No. 414 at Kazakhstan’s Consulate General in New York serves citizens from the northern and northeastern US states. Kazakh singer and Honored Worker of the Republic of Kazakhstan Madina Sadvakasova was the first to cast her ballot there.
Polling station No. 472 at Kazakhstan’s Consulate General in San Francisco opened later due to the three-hour time difference with Washington. It serves citizens in the western US states and will complete the voting process in the United States.
Aiman, a Bolashak scholarship holder studying public health at the University of California, said she travelled to San Francisco to take part in the elections and demonstrate her civic position, noting that Kazakhstan’s government consistently supports young people in pursuing education.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that polling stations for the Qurultay elections had been operating at Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions across the Middle East.
