Nursultan Abishuly Nazarbayev (born 6 July 1940) is a Kazakh politician who served as the first president of Kazakhstan from 1991 to 2019. He also held the special title of Elbasy from 2010 to 2022 and chairman of the Security Council from 1991 to 2022.
Nazarbayev's political career began in the Soviet era, where he joined the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1962 while working as a steel factory worker. Rising through the party ranks, he became Prime Minister of the Kazakh SSR in 1984 and First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan in 1989. In 1990, the Supreme Soviet elected him as the president of Kazakhstan. Nazarbayev played a key role in navigating Kazakhstan through the dissolution of the Soviet Union, leading to the country's independence in 1991. In the country’s first direct 1991 presidential election, Nazarbayev appeared on the ballot without opposition and secured an overwhelming victory. In 1995, ruling by decree, Nazarbayev extended his presidency through a referendum and adopted a new constitution that expanded his powers. He was re-elected in an undemocratic 1999 election, deemed eligible to run again in 2005 by a Supreme Court ruling, and benefited from a 2007 constitutional amendment solely exempting term limits for him, allowing undemocratic re-elections in 2011 and 2015.
In March 2019, following a wave of protests and increasing discontent, Nazarbayev announced his resignation, handing over power to Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Tokayev was elected president in a snap election in June 2019. While Nazarbayev stepped down from the presidency, he remained a powerful figure in Kazakh politics, retaining influence through his leadership of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan and the Nur Otan party. He also chaired the Security Council until his dismissal in 2022. Nazarbayev's power was diminished following the 2022 unrest, which led to a constitutional referendum that stripped him of many privileges and titles, including his membership in the Senate and the Constitutional Council. By 2023, he had lost most of his official titles, signaling the end of his political dominance.
Nazarbayev was one of the longest-ruling non-royal leaders in the world, having led Kazakhstan for nearly three decades, excluding chairmanship of the Security Council after the end of his presidency. He has often been referred to as a dictator due to his consolidation of power and autocratic rule. His tenure was marred by widespread authoritarianism, significant human rights abuses, nepotism, and systemic corruption. His leadership was further characterized by a pervasive cult of personality, with his image and influence deeply entrenched in the nation’s political and social landscape. Nazarbayev gained recognition for his efforts in nuclear disarmament, renouncing Kazakhstan's inherited nuclear arsenal, and closing the Semipalatinsk Test Site.
Early life and career
Nursultan Nazarbayev () was born in Chemolgan, a village near Almaty, when Kazakhstan was one of the republics of the Soviet Union, to parents Äbiş Nazarbayev (1903–1970) and Äljan Nazarbayeva (1910–1978). His father Äbish was a poor labourer who worked for a wealthy local family until Soviet rule confiscated the family's farmland in the 1930s during Joseph Stalin's collectivization policy. Following this, his father took the family to the mountains to live out a nomadic existence. His family's religious tradition was Sunni Islam.
Äbiş avoided compulsory military service due to a withered arm he had sustained when putting out a fire. At the end of World War II, the family returned to the village of Chemolgan where in 1948, Nazarbayev began attending school and being taught the Russian language; while living with his paternal uncle, as his parents had not owned dwelling in the place for a brief period. Nazarbayev later himself chose to settle in the upper part of Chemolgan where mainly ethnic Russians lived, in order to master Russian while communicating with them. Despite performing well at school, by the time Nazarbayev was in 10th grade, all the classes in the same grade were called off due to a student shortage and as a result in 1957, he was sent to a boarding school named after Abai Qunanbaiuly in Kaskelen. During that time, Nazarbayev's father, Äbiş, wished to create favourable conditions towards his son for studying and living as well as to potentially avoid bad influence from peers by renting himself an apartment for Nazarbayev in the village.
After leaving school, Nazarbayev took up a one-year, government-funded scholarship at the Karaganda Steel Mill in Temirtau. He also spent time training at a steel plant in Dniprodzerzhynsk, and therefore was away from Temirtau when riots broke out there over working conditions. By the age of 20, he was earning a relatively good wage doing "incredibly heavy and dangerous work" in the blast furnace. From there, Nazarbayev married Sara Nazarbayeva on 25 August 1962, who was a dispatcher at the same steel mill that he worked in. Together, both parties would eventually have three daughters: Dariga, Dinara and Aliya, born in 1963, 1968 and 1980, respectively.
On 15 November 1962, Nazarbayev joined the Communist Party, becoming a prominent member of the Young Communist League (Komsomol) and full-time worker for the party, while attending the Karagandy Polytechnic Institute. He was appointed secretary of the Communist Party Committee of the Karaganda Metallurgical Kombinat in 1972, and four years later became Second Secretary of the Karaganda Regional Party Committee.
In his role as a bureaucrat, Nazarbayev dealt with legal papers, logistical problems, and industrial disputes, as well as meeting workers to solve individual issues. He later wrote that "the central allocation of capital investment and the distribution of funds" meant that infrastructure was poor, workers were demoralised and overworked, and centrally set targets were unrealistic; he saw the steel plant's problems as a microcosm for the problems for the Soviet Union as a whole.
Rise to power
In 1984, at the age 43, Nazarbayev became the prime minister of Kazakhstan (Chairman of the Council of Ministers), the youngest-ever officeholder in the Soviet Union to serve the post, under Dinmukhamed Kunaev, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan. During that period, the Perestroika policies slowly began to take place under Mikhail Gorbachev while Nazarbayev himself was viewed to be more of experienced policy maker as his views and stances had already been formed during the Khrushchev Thaw and 1965 Soviet economic reform. Kazakhstan at that time was seen as a backwater republic within the Soviet Union with its industry being heavily reliant upon rich raw materials, specifically in mining sectors and was forced upon to import its consumer goods from other Soviet republics. It faced problems especially in countryside with a need for state farm repairs, as well as housing for farmers, lack of available preschools for rural children which Nazarbayev during his tenure raised issues in regard to these problems that was reportedly met with disagreements amongst the republic's leadership.
Growing frustrated over the problems within the Kazakh SSR, at the 16th Session of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan held in January 1986, Nazarbayev criticized Askar Kunayev, head of the Academy of Sciences, for not reforming his department. Dinmukhamed, Nazarbayev's boss and Askar's brother, felt deeply angered and betrayed. Kunayev went to Moscow and demanded Nazarbayev's dismissal while Nazarbayev's supporters campaigned for Kunayev's dismissal and Nazarbayev's promotion.
Kunayev was ousted in 1986 and replaced by Gennady Kolbin, an ethnic Russian, who despite his office, had little authority in Kazakhstan. Nazarbayev was named party leader and the top position (First Secretary of the Communist Party) on 22 June 1989, only the second Kazakh (after Kunayev) to hold the post. He was the chairman of the Supreme Soviet (head of state) from 22 February to 24 April 1990.
On 24 April 1990, Nazarbayev was elected as the first president of Kazakhstan by the Supreme Soviet. He supported Russian president Boris Yeltsin against the attempted coup in August 1991 by Soviet hardliners. Nazarbayev was close enough to Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev for Gorbachev to consider him for the post of Vice President of the Soviet Union; however, Nazarbayev turned the offer down. However, on 29 July, Gorbachev, Yeltsin, and Nazarbayev discussed and decided that once the New Union Treaty was signed, Nazarbayev would replace Valentin Pavlov as Premier of the Soviet Union.
The Soviet Union began disintegrating following the failed coup, though Nazarbayev was highly concerned with maintaining the close economic ties between Kazakhstan and Russia. In the country's first presidential election, held on 1 December, he appeared alone on the ballot and won 95% of the vote. On 16 December, Nazarbayev signed the Constitutional Law "On the State Independence of the Republic of Kazakhstan", which had been adopted earlier that day by the Supreme Soviet, formally establishing Kazakhstan as a sovereign state and making it the last Soviet republic to declare independence. Five days later, he joined other leaders in signing the Alma-Ata Protocol on 21 December, bringing Kazakhstan into the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Presidency (1990–2019)
1991–1999: First term
Nazarbayev renamed the former State Defense Committees as the Ministry of Defense and appointed Sagadat Nurmagambetov as Defense Minister on 7 May 1992.
The Supreme Soviet, under the leadership of Chairman Serikbolsyn Abdilin, began debating over a draft constitution in June 1992. Opposition political parties Azat, Jeltoqsan and the Republican Party, held demonstrations in Alma-Ata from 10 to 17 June 1992 calling for the formation of a coalition government, resignation of Sergey Tereshchenko's government and the Supreme Soviet which, at that time, was composed of former Communist Party legislators who had yet to stand in an election. The first constitution of Kazakhstan, adopted on 28 January 1993, created a strong executive branch with limited checks on executive power.
On 10 December 1993, the Supreme Soviet voted to dissolve itself and that same day, a presidential decree was signed which set changes in local representative and executive bodies with elections of the mäslihats (local legislatures) taking place every five years and äkims (local heads) being appointed by the president. In March 1994, Kazakhstan for the first time since independence, held a legislative election which was boycotted by the Azat and Jeltoqsan parties. From there, the pro-presidential People's Union of Kazakhstan Unity party won a majority of 30 seats with independent candidates who were on presidential-list won 42 seats. The OSCE observers called the elections unfair, reporting an inflated voter turnout. Nevertheless, the new composition of the Parliament was considered to be "professional" with different various political factions that functioned. In May 1994, the Supreme Council passed a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Sergey Tereshchenko amidst political scandals evolving Tereshchenko and government ministers. Nazarbayev objected to the change, arguing that the Constitution gave the president the right to appoint the PM with already existing parliamentary confirmation regardless of the motion of confidence. However, he eventually backed down, dismissing Tereshchenko's government in October 1994 and appointing ethnic-Kazakh Akezhan Kazhegeldin as the new PM.
In 1994, Nazarbayev suggested relocating the capital city from Almaty to Astana, and the official changeover of the capital happened on 10 December 1997.
In March 1995, the Constitutional Court ruled that 1994 legislative elections were held unconstitutionally and as a result, Nazarbayev dissolved the Supreme Council. From that period, all bills were adopted on the basis of presidential decrees such as outlawing any civic participation in an unregistered and/or illegal public association who would be punished with 15-day jail sentence or fines from 5 to 10 times the minimum monthly wage in an effort "to fight organized crime." An April 1995 referendum extended Nazarbayev's term, originally set to end in 1996, to until 2000. In August 1995, a referendum was held which allowed for greater presidential powers and established a bicameral Parliament as well. Both the elections for Mazhilis (lower house) and the Senate (upper house) were held in December 1995 which convened in January 1996. Nazarbayev dismissed the accusations from critics of him personally dissolving the legislature by claiming that it was under Constitutional Court's orders, saying "the law is the law, and the President is obliged to abide by the constitution, otherwise, how will we build a rule-of-law state?" and that the cancellation of the 1996 presidential elections was made by the decision of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan arguing that "Western schemes do not work in our Eurasian expanses."
In October 1997, Nazarbayev dismissed Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin from his post, which according to political experts was seen as a "power grab". In his address, he criticized Kazhegeldin over his record reforms and in his place, Nazarbayev appointed Nurlan Balgimbayev, an oil engineer who prior served as an Oil and Gas Minister.
1999–2006: Second term
On 7 October 1998, a number of amendments were made to the Constitution of Kazakhstan in which the term of office of the president was increased from 5 to 7 years as well as term limits. The changes also removed restriction on the maximum required age of a presidential candidate. The following day on 8 October, Nazarbayev signed decree setting the election date for January 1999. He was reelected for second term by winning 81% of the vote in the first round, defeating his main challenger and former Supreme Council chairman Serikbolsyn Abdildin. Abdildin himself in response refused to acknowledge the official results, insisting that they were falsified.
In February 1999, several pro-presidential parties formed into one party named Otan. At the Founding Congress of the party which was held on 1 March 1999, Nazarbayev was elected as the chairman. From there, he suggested that former PM Sergey Tereshchenko should take over the leading role, noting the constitutional limits on president's affiliation with political parties while Nazarbayev himself remained as de facto party leader. In July 1999, Nazarbayev signed decree setting the date for the legislative elections. The Otan, for the first time, participated in the elections, winning 23 seats. In the aftermath on 1 October 1999, Nazarbayev appointed Kassym-Jomart Tokayev as the PM after his predecessor Nurlan Balgimbayev had faced an increasing unpopularity amidst worsening economy and scandal revolving around an arms deal with North Korea.
Nazarbayev appointed Altynbek Sarsenbayev, who at the time served as the minister of culture, information and concord, the secretary of the Security Council, replacing Marat Tazhin, on 4 May 2001. Tazhin became the chairman of the National Security Committee, replacing Alnur Mussayev. Mussayev became the head of the Presidential Security Service.
In January 2002, Prime Minister Kassym-Jomart Tokayev resigned from his post and was subsequently appointed as the minister of foreign affairs and State Secretary. Imangali Tasmagambetov took over Tokayev's role as the new PM which viewed as a response towards a political crisis which occurred following the formation of the Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan in November 2001 by several prominent Kazakh officials who called for political and democratic reforms. Tasmagambetov's government was short-lived, facing opposition by the Parliament over his proposed policies on land privatisation which led to a motion of no confidence against him. Tasmagambetov resigned in June 2003 and Nazarbayev appointed Daniyal Akhmetov to lead the government citing the reason "to intensify the pace of social and economic development."
2006–2011: Third term
In June 2000, the Constitutional Council announced its resolution which declared that Nazarbayev's second term was, in fact, his first due to the adaptation of the new Kazakh Constitution which took place in 1995 during Nazarbayev's first term. This allowed him the opportunity to run for another election as his term was set to end in 2007.
On 4 December 2005, new presidential elections were held where Nazarbayev won by an overwhelming majority of 91.15% (from a total of 6,871,571 eligible participating voters) in the first round. Nazarbayev was sworn in for another seven-year term on 11 January 2006.
In 2006, the Otan increased its ranks as all pro-presidential parties began merging into one. Nazarbayev supported the move, stating the need for there to be fewer, but stronger parties that "efficiently defend the interests of the population." In December 2006, the Otan renamed itself into Nur Otan and on 4 July 2007, Nazarbayev was re-elected as the party's chairman.
Amidst the political shakeup, Nazarbayev dismissed Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov in January 2007 and appointed Deputy PM Karim Massimov to the post. He stated that Massimov had the "sufficient knowledge and experience" to "develop Kazakhstan's successes." On 18 May 2007, the Parliament of Kazakhstan approved a constitutional amendment which allowed the incumbent president—himself—to run for an unlimited number of five-year terms. This amendment applied specifically and only to Nazarbayev: the original constitution's prescribed maximum of two five-year terms will still apply to all future presidents of Kazakhstan. That same year in August, legislative elections were held from which the Nur Otan won all the contested seats in the Mazhilis, eliminating any form of opposition which sparked controversy and criticism from international organizations and groups within the country. In response, Kazakhstan introduced an amendment by allowing for a two-party system since any party that wins second place in race—regardless or not if it passes the 7% electoral threshold—would be guaranteed to have representation in the Parliament.
Nazarbayev has always emphasized the role of education in the nation's social development. In order to make education affordable, on 13 January 2009, he introduced educational grant "Orken" for the talented youth of Kazakhstan. This decree was amended on 23 September 2016.
In 2009, former UK Cabinet Minister Jonathan Aitken released a biography of the Kazakh leader entitled Nazarbayev and the Making of Kazakhstan. The book took a generally pro-Nazarbayev stance, asserting in the introduction that he is mostly responsible for the success of modern Kazakhstan.
2011–2015: Fourth term
In April 2011, Nazarbayev ran for a fourth term, winning 95.5% of the vote during the first round with virtually no opposition candidates. Following his victory, he announced the need in finding an "optimal way of empowering parliament, increasing the government's responsibility and improving the electoral process."
On 11 June 2011, Daniel Witt, Vice Chairman of the Eurasia Foundation, acknowledged the role of Nazarbayev and his political reforms:"[President] Nazarbayev has led Kazakhstan through difficult times and into an era of prosperity and growth. He has demonstrated that he values his U.S. and Western alliances and is committed to achieving democratic governance."In December 2011, opponents of Nazarbayev rioted in Mangystau, described by the BBC as the biggest opposition movement of his time in power. On 16 December 2011, demonstrations in the oil town of Zhanaozen clashed with police on the country's Independence Day. Fifteen people were shot dead by security forces and almost 100 people were injured. Protests quickly spread to other cities but then died down. The subsequent trial of demonstrators uncovered mass abuse and torture of detainees.
On 24 September 2012, Nazarbayev appointed Serik Akhmetov as the PM, a close-ally of Nazarbayev who served as First Deputy PM under Massimov's cabinet and the Äkim of Karaganda Region. Massimov in turn, became the new head of the Presidential Administration.
In December 2012, Nazarbayev outlined a forward-looking national strategy called the Kazakhstan 2050 Strategy.
In 2014, Nazarbayev proposed that Kazakhstan should change its name to "Kazakh Eli" ("Country of the Kazakhs"), for the country to attract better and more foreign investment, since "Kazakhstan" by its name is associated with other "-stan" countries. Nazarbayev suggested Mongolia receives more investment than Kazakhstan because it is not a "-stan" country, even though it is in the same neighborhood, and not as stable as Kazakhstan. However, he noted that decision should be decided by the people on whether the country should change its name.
After Kazakhstan faced an economic downturn of which was caused by low oil prices and devaluation of the tenge, Nazarbayev on 2 April 2014 dismissed PM Serik Akhmetov and reappointed Karim Massimov to the post. Akhmetov subsequently was appointed as a defence minister while Massimov's government was aimed at dealing with the economic crisis.
2015–2019: Fifth and final term
Nazarbayev for the last time ran again in the 2015 presidential election for the fifth term. From there, he gathered 97.7% of the vote share in the first round, making it one of the biggest in Kazakhstan's history. In his victory speech, he emphasized the top priority in Nurly Zhol stimulus package that was designed in softening the social blow caused by economic troubles. At a later news conference, Nazarbayev speaking about the electoral results remarked, "I apologize that for superdemocratic states such figures are unacceptable. But I could do nothing. If I had interfered, I would have looked undemocratic, right?" The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe criticized the election as falling short of international democratic standards.
In early 2016, it was announced that 1.7 million hectares of agricultural land would be sold at an auction. This sparked rare protests around the country which called for Nazarbayev to stop the momentum on land sales and solve the nation's problems as well. In response to the fears of the lands being sold to foreigners, especially Chinese, Nazarbayev fired back at claims, calling them "groundless" and warned that any provocateur would be punished. On 1 May 2016, at the Kazakhstan People's Unity Day, Nazarbayev warned that without unity and stability, a crisis similarly in Ukraine would happen. In June 2016, armed attacks in Aktobe took place resulting in deaths of 25 people. Nazarbayev called the incident as terrorist attacks which were orchestrated from abroad to destabilize the country similarly in a colour revolution to which he accused of being infiltrated by the ISIS militants.On 8 September 2016, Nazarbayev appointed Karim Massimov as the National Security Committee Chairman and Bakhytzhan Sagintayev to the post of the PM. Days later on 13 September, Nazarbayev's daughter Dariga was appointed as the member of the Senate. This suggested that Nazarbayev was preparing for his succession to be taken over by Dariga as the cabinet reshuffling had occurred after Uzbek president Islam Karimov's death which created political uncertainty in the neighboring country. Nazarbayev dismissed the claims of hereditary succession in an interview to the Bloomberg News in November 2016, saying that the "transfer of power is spelled out by the Constitution."
In January 2017, Nazarbayev proposed constitutional reforms, which would allow for the Parliament to have greater role in decision making, calling it "a consistent and logical step in the development of the state". The Parliament approved several amendments to the Constitution on 5 March 2017, making the president no longer able to override parliamentary votes of no-confidence, while giving the legislative branch to form a government cabinet, implementing state programs and policies. The move was seen as way by Nazarbayev to ensure the potential of a peaceful transfer of power.
Nazarbayev, along with seventeen heads of state and government from around the world, which included Felipe VI of Spain and leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization member countries, consisting of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and India, attended the opening ceremony of Expo 2017 which was held in Astana. An estimated 3.86 million people visited the site with Nazarbayev at the closing ceremony on 10 September 2017 calling it as "Kazakhstan's most brilliant achievements since its independence."
Senate Chairman Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, in an interview to BBC News in June 2018, suggested that Nazarbayev's term presidential from 2015 was in fact, the last one as he hinted the possibility that Nazarbayev would not run for re-election which was scheduled for 2020. Minister of Information and Communications Dauren Abaev responded to Tokayev's statements claiming that "there's still a lot of time" for Nazarbayev to decide on whether to run for re-election pointing out that the decision will be primarily based on his. He also added that the country would only benefit if Nazarbayev chooses to run for sixth term.
Resignation
On 19 March 2019, following unusually persistent protests in cities across the country, Nazarbayev announced his resignation as President of Kazakhstan, citing the need for "a new generation of leaders". The announcement was broadcast in a televised address in Astana after which he signed a decree ending his powers from 20 March 2019. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, speaker of the upper house of parliament, was appointed as president of the country until the end of the presidential term.
Notwithstanding his resignation as president, he continued to head the ruling Nur Otan party and remained a member of the Constitutional Council. In his televised address Nazarbayev pointed out that he had been granted the honorary status of elbasy (leader of the nation, leader of the people), the title bestowed upon him by parliament in 2010. The title was later removed due to the cancellation of the Law on the First President.
Various colleagues of Nazarbayev reacted within hours of the announcement, with Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev holding a telephone conversation with Nazarbayev, calling him a "great politician". In a cabinet meeting, Russian president Vladimir Putin praised Nazarbayev's leadership, even going as far as to say that the Eurasian Economic Union was Nazarbayev's "brainchild". Other world leaders who sent messages to Nazarbayev included Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan, Alexander Lukashenko, President of Belarus, and Emomali Rahmon, President of Tajikistan.
According to Nazarbayev himself, he described his intention for stepping down was due to "peak of trust" by the people and that it was "necessary to leave", recalling his memories in attending funerals of Soviet leaders Leonid Brezhnev, Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko, embarking that "there is still a limit of human capabilities."
Allegations of corruption
Over the course of Nazarbayev's presidency, an increasing number of accusations of corruption and favoritism were directed against Nazarbayev and his circle. Critics said that the country's government came to resemble a clan system.
According to The New Yorker, in 1999 Swiss banking officials discovered $85 million in an account apparently belonging to Nazarbayev; the money, intended for the Kazakh treasury, had in part been transferred through accounts linked to James Giffen. Subsequently, Nazarbayev successfully pushed for a parliamentary bill granting him legal immunity, as well as another designed to legalise money laundering, angering critics further. When Kazakh opposition newspaper Respublika reported in 2002 that Nazarbayev had in the mid-1990s secretly stashed away $1 billion of state oil revenue in Swiss bank accounts, the decapitated carcass of a dog was left outside the newspaper's offices, with a warning reading "There won't be a next time"; the dog's head later turned up outside editor Irina Petrushova's apartment, with a warning reading "There will be no last time." The newspaper was firebombed as well.
In May 2007, the Parliament of Kazakhstan approved a constitutional amendment which would allow Nazarbayev to seek re-election as many times as he wishes. This amendment applies specifically and only to Nazarbayev, since it states that the first president will have no limits on how many times he can run for office, but subsequent presidents will be restricted to a five-year term.
As of 2015, Kazakhstan has never held an election meeting international standards.
In May 2018, the Parliament of Kazakhstan passed a constitutional amendment allowing Nazarbayev to serve as Chairman of the Security Council for life. These reforms, which were approved by the Constitutional Council on 28 June, also expanded the powers of the Security Council, granting it the status of a constitutional body. The amendment states that, "The decisions of the security council and the chairman of the security council are mandatory and are subject to strict execution by state bodies, organisations and officials of the Republic of Kazakhstan."