Nazarbaev, Nursultan

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(b. 1940), president of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Nursultan Nazarbaev was born in the town of Chemolgan. He joined the Communist Party of Kazakhstan (CPKaz) in 1962 while he was studying at the Karaganda (Qaraghandy) Metallurgical Combine in Kazakhstan. Rising through the CPKaz party ranks, Nazarbaev eventually became the first secretary of the Karaganda Oblast (Region) CPKaz Committee. In 1984, he assumed the position of chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, and, in 1989, first secretary of the CPKaz. In 1990, he was elected president of the Kazakh Socialist Soviet Republic, a position he held when Kazakhstan became an independent republic in December 1991.

Since independence, Nursultan Nazarbaev has maintained his hold on power. A referendum on 30 April 1995 extended his tenure as president until the year 2000. Calling an early election, he won a seven-year term in 10 January 1999 by 82 percent of the vote, with his main rival, Serikbolsyn Abdildin, receiving only 12 percent.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Nazarbaev has expanded his presidential powers by decree. He can appoint and dismiss the cabinet and regional officials, dissolve parliament, call referenda, and initiate constitutional amendments. Western governments have been critical of his authoritarian tendencies and human-rights record. However, the energy wealth of Kazakhstan, as well as its strategic location (south of Russia and west of China), ensures that the country will remain of some importance in international affairs.

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Nazarbaev, Nursultan. (1998) Kazakhstan—2030. Almaty, Kazakhstan: Bilim.

Olcott, Martha Brill. (2002) Kazakhstan: Unfulfilled Promises. Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment.