Author: Tamara Yeslyamova
Mentor: Madina Alimkhanova
In some elections in the villages of West Kazakhstan, apathy prevails: voters do not come to the polls, convinced that the outcome has long been predetermined. In others, turnout is record-high, and applause follows the announcement of the results.
Since 2021, residents of Kazakhstan have been able to elect their rural akims themselves. But three years later, the reform is stalling between the old habit of authorities appointing “their own” and the people’s new demand for true democracy. Where elections turn into a performance, nothing changes. But where the system fails — as in the village of Kyzyl-Oba in the Zhangalinsky district — the community is beginning to change.
The full article prepared by the project resident can be read at the following link: https://www.uralskweek.kz/2025/09/04/akim-ot-naroda-chto-mozhet-izmenit-nastoyashhaya-demokratiya-na-sele/