Turnout in a general election in the oil-rich Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan Saturday had reached 58 per cent shortly before polls closed, the Central Electoral Commission reported, according to DPA. Some 8.9 million Kazakhs are eligible to vote in the parliamentary election in which seven parties are vying for some 100 seats in the lower house. It is widely believed that a victory for the Nur Otan (Radiant Fatherland) party of authoritarian President Nursultan Nazarbayev is certain. "Vote for the party that will lead Kazakhstan peacefully towards becoming one of the world's 50 most competitive countries," Interfax news agency quoted Nazarbayev as saying. "The conclusive results should be available on Sunday morning after the receipt of votes by Kazakhs living abroad," Deputy Foreign Minister Erschan Katchanov said in Astana. There had been no reports of incidents during voting. According to recent polls, the party is likely to win at least 80 per cent of votes. Opposition parties are hoping to gain more than 7 per cent of the minimum vote required to enter parliament. However, many people did not go to the polls Saturday and many voters in Astana expressed doubts about the procedure.
