A WEB

On May 14, 2025, in the city of Turkistan, the signing of the Regulation on the Advisory Platform of the Central Election Authorities (APCEA) of the member states of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) took place, along with the International Scientific and Practical Conference titled “The Turkic World: Traditions, Practice, and Prospects for the Development of Electoral Systems,” organized by the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan jointly with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The events were attended by the heads and representatives of the central election authorities of the OTS member states – Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, and the observer state to the OTS – Hungary, as well as four authoritative international organizations – the OTS, the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB), the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States (TURKPA), the Turkic Academy, scholars from the OTS countries, Members of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, members of the Expert Council under the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and chairpersons of the territorial election commissions of the regions, and the cities of Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent.

During the plenary session of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “The Turkic World: Traditions, Practice, and Prospects for the Development of Electoral Systems,” the head of the Central Election Commission of Kazakhstan, Nurlan Abdirov, emphasized the importance of strengthening international electoral cooperation, the historical and spiritual significance of the city of Turkistan as a symbol of unity of the Turkic world, and presented information about the transformation of Kazakhstan’s electoral system in the context of the constitutional reform initiated by the President of the country Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan Sayasat Nurbek, Secretary General of the OTS Kubanychbek Omuraliev, as well as the heads of the central election authorities of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, and Uzbekistan delivered welcoming speeches to the conference participants. The speakers emphasized the importance of exchanging experience and preserving the traditional foundations of electoral systems.

The conference featured professional dialogue and a constructive and fruitful exchange of experience in the development of electoral systems in the Turkic states. The outcomes of the conference will serve the further improvement of the legislative foundations and practices of the development of electoral systems in the OTS member states.

The conference continued with two parallel sessions dedicated to the historical and contemporary experience of electoral systems in the Turkic countries.

Session 1: “Traditions of Electivity in Turkic Communities”

The session was moderated by Member of Parliament, Secretary of the Committee on International Relations, Defense and Security of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor Darkhan Kydyrali. Historical aspects of the formation of authority in the Turkic states were discussed. Scholars from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Türkiye presented reports on the elections of khagans, judicial procedures of biys, steppe democracy in the Golden Horde, political reforms and electoral processes in Türkiye, and the characteristics and centuries-old electoral traditions in nomadic states across the Eurasian space.

Session 2: “Analysis of Electoral Systems of the Turkic States: Achievements and Prospects”

The session was moderated by the Rector of the Karaganda University named after academician E.A. Buketov, Doctor of Law, Professor Nurlan Dulatbekov. Scholars presented reports on the state and prospects of the development of electoral processes in the Turkic countries. Issues of transformation and continuity of institutions of popular will, modern trends in electoral law, mechanisms for ensuring voters’ rights, new trends in campaigning, and more were discussed.

As a result of the conference, the Turkistan Resolution was adopted, in which participants emphasized their shared commitment to further strengthening democratic institutions and electoral processes and noted that the conference would provide new impetus for the involvement and broad participation of scholars and experts from the Turkic community of all OTS member states in discussing current issues of improving electoral systems and increasing citizens’ trust in them.

Participants of the conference also recommended that the authorized bodies of the OTS member states support joint scientific research and the holding of scientific and practical conferences in the field of electoral processes.

The conference materials will be published in the form of a collection in Kazakh and English.